


The Avengers V: The Masters of Evil

by MindKnox



Series: This World Of Marvels [1]
Category: Captain America (1990), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Video Game 2018), The Amazing Spider-Man (Movies - Webb), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Awesome Maria Hill, BAMF Maria Hill, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Ensemble Cast, Established Maria Hill/Natasha Romanov, F/F, Friendship, Gen, Light-Hearted, Maria Hill-centric, Masters of Evil, Minor Gamora/Peter Quill, Norman Osborn Being a Jerk, Past Character Death, Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Post-Canon, Post-Spider-Man: Far From Home, Scott Lang is a Good Bro, Soul Stone (Marvel), Stealth Crossover, Team, Teambuilding, Unofficial Sequel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:27:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 25,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23604541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MindKnox/pseuds/MindKnox
Summary: In the wake of Tony and Natasha's sacrifices, as well as the disappearance of the Avengers as a team, Maria Hill takes it upon herself to assemble a new team to stop the next Thanos. Just one problem: almost all of her top candidates are currently incapacitated or busy. Thus, she must assemble the reserves and get them into shape as a new threat is on the horizon.
Relationships: Gamora & Natasha Romanov, Korg of Krona & Miek, Maria Hill & New Avengers Team, Maria Hill/Natasha Romanov, Night Monkey/Silver Sablinova, Scott Lang & Melvin Potter, Scott Lang/Hope Van Dyne, Soren/Talos (Marvel)
Series: This World Of Marvels [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2145684
Comments: 37
Kudos: 32





	1. The Rainy Day Assembly

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, everyone! Thank you for clicking on my story, it means a lot to me! I plan on updating this story two chapters at a time, so do take note of that. Please leave kudos if you like what you see and leave comments if you have any thoughts! And most important of all, enjoy!

There was a time, one so very long ago, when the world learned a lesson they did not want to be taught. A simple Calculus lesson that would hurt more than it had ever helped.

" _This universe is finite, its resources finite. If life is left unchecked, life will cease to exist. It needs correction."_

" _I'm the only one who knows that. At least, I'm the only one with the will to act on it._ "

And regrettably, the universe was dealt the correction of a Mad Titan. Countless lives were gone in an instant.

But five years later, they were returned, thanks to the efforts of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and their sacrifices against Thanos’ wicked forces.

* * *

_Undisclosed SHIELD Cemetery,_

_May 1st, 2023 16:25_

As the world mourned the loss of Tony Stark, only a few had gathered in secret and in memoriam of the other lost Avenger. One whose home and family were brought to her by fate’s merciful hand.

Raindrops pitter patter on a black umbrella. Standing in the dark underneath, Maria Hill silently thinks back on her lover’s past. The arrival of another mourner snaps her back to the reality around her, and she offers him a small smirk. “You’ve seen better days, Rogers.”

“I have, yes. We all have.” Steve sighs as his frail body is wrapped in a gentle hug. Steve thinks to himself how unlike her this is. Nat’s death has seriously hurt her. “I’m sorry, Maria. Truly, I-”

Maria gives him a reassuring nod and tells him, “It’s not your fault. It was that purple bastard who caused this.” The anger in her voice is subdued, but ever-present.

Another mourner states firmly, “He’s gone with the wind, as we’d have it.” Stepping out of the shadows, Nick Fury reveals himself to his friends.

As he plants a friendly hand on the old man’s shoulder, Steve asks him, “Fury. How have you been?”

With only an inkling of astonishment at the world around him, he tells Steve, “Busy. The world’s changed since we were gone. Got a lot of work to do, especially with space back in the mix. But I’ve got more than a few friends who are well-versed in that department. You’ve met them before; Carol and Coulson.”

From the same shadows that Fury emerged from is Phil Coulson. Steve lets out an amused, earnest chuckle. “Holy shit. You’re alive.” It feels like a relief to say that, although it quickly reminds him of Nat.

With a grin on his face, Phil walks up to Steve and hugs him. “Age has got you swearing like a sailor, old man.” It’s a bear hug, sure, but Steve’s still got some of his Super Soldier strength in him to contain it. Coulson laments, “It’s been too long. And too late, I see.” He walks to Maria and gives her a hug too, knowing just how much she is hurting inside. “I’m sorry about Agent Romanov.”

As the four stand together around a circular headstone with the emblem of the Black Widow inscribed onto it, Maria speaks softly and, surprisingly, vulnerably: “We’re here today to mourn the loss of Natasha Romanov. She wasn’t just a friend to us. She was family. We loved her, and she loved us. After many of us were killed in the Snap, Nat marched bravely into a terrifying, unclear future, living on in our honor. It was with great courage and tenacity that she led the Avengers in the face of a post-apocalyptic She gave her life to save us all. And now, in her honor, we live on.” Maria looks off into the distance, fighting back the urge to break down on the spot.

As silence falls over the service, Maria solemnly tells her friends, “We can’t let something like this happen again. I can’t let this happen again.”

Slowly, Fury approaches Maria and tells her, with a hand on her shoulder and the vocal fortitude only the Director of SHIELD can muster, “We won’t. There are threats far beyond our pay grade, sure. But we’ll adapt as we always have.” Seeing the resolve on Maria’s face, he assures her, “I’ve already got two Agents ready to take on a very special job for the both of us. I’ll be busy up in space, and you need time to mourn.”

“I don’t need a break, boss. I need to get back to work. It’s what Nat would’ve wanted.” Maria procures a red rose from her jacket and gently lays it on the headstone. _For Natasha_ , she tells herself as a tear rolls down her cheek. Must be the rain.

Steve walks over and tells her softly, “She would want you to be happy, Maria. I have faith that the future of the world is in good hands.”

She knows he’s referring to her. Her and the next generation of heroes that she will proudly lead into that sunnier tomorrow. “Thank you.” As the four leave the service to resume their lives, Maria looks back at her love’s resting place and tells her, “Good night, Nat.”

* * *

_Commander Hill’s Quarters_

_April 3rd, 2024, 10:30_

The Sun shines on a new day. The SHIELD Helicarrier cruises over the Eastern Seaboard as one of Commander Hill’s top Agents marches through the cool halls of the airship. The Agent arrives at his destination and walks in. With a salute, he proudly says, “Good morning, Commander Hill.”

Sitting at her desk, Maria salutes him back and silently tells him to take a seat. “Good morning, Agent Klein. As you may have seen, the world is in disarray. The Avengers are gone. Spider-Man has a wanted name and face. Director Fury and Captain Danvers are halfway across the galaxy fighting a Kree armada. Wakanda is defending itself from two coups. Doctor Strange and Miss Maximoff are… travelling the Multiverse doing God-knows-what. Captain Wilson and Sergeant Barnes are tracking down our old pal Zemo. Our top candidates for the New Avengers Initiative are currently incapacitated, and we need to prepare the world for the return of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, and for the next Thanos.”

“What is your next move, Commander?”

A smile comes to Maria’s face as she browses her computer’s files. Hopeful for the future and who she sees, she tells him, “It’s time to assemble the reserves... Also, get Talos and Soren on the phone. I have a task for them.”


	2. I Want YOU For The New Avengers!

_The White House_

_April 4th, 2024, 15:45_

Maria sits in a darkened room, guarded by SHIELD Agents in the shadows. She awaits the arrival of the Secretary of Defense, knowing that he’s in today.

Right on schedule, he arrives. She looks at him and says, “Good afternoon, Mister Secretary.”

Rhodey salutes Hill and tells her, “At ease, Commander.” Maria walks over to him and offers a friendly handshake. Letting go of the stern demeanor, Rhodey smirks and shakes her hand. “How’ve you been, Maria?”

“Busy. Dealing with Mysterio in London took a lot out of me.”

“Of course.” The two take their seats and Rhodey continues, “I take it you’re not just here to catch up on old times.”

“No, though I’m not against it. I’m here to recruit you for the New Avengers Initiative. I’m positive you’ve heard of our friends and their rather full schedules. SHIELD is working on assistance, but it won’t make their problems any easier. And in the meantime, we need to prepare for the future.”

“Y’know, I’ve been wondering where the Avengers went. As a team. And quite frankly, so have the American people. You’re right we need a team, and I’m all for it… just that I’m also busy.” Maria looks aside, rather disappointed. Rhodey reassures her, “Thankfully, Tony came up with this little gizmo.” He pulls out some sort of earpiece and fastens it onto his right ear. Crossing his arms with a smirk on his face, he adds, “Helps when I’m at a boring Senate gathering. Say hi, War Machine.” The door opens and the War Machine armor walks into the room carefully, waving at Maria as it does so. “He’s quiet sometimes.”

Maria shakes Rhodey’s hand and tells him, “Happy to have you onboard, Rhodey. I’ll give you more details later.”

* * *

_PymTech Headquarters_

_April 4th, 2024, 16:20_

Slurping on smoothies from the cart outside with his loving girlfriend, Scott joyfully tells her, “Cassie’s really got a knack for this job, Hope.”

Hope, with a few fries in her delicate grip, tells Scott, “Well, she learned from you.” And speaking of, they see Cassie hard at work as a tour guide. “Oh, here they come.”

Cassie Lang leads the amused tourists - kids, parents, businesspeople, and more - and explains to them happily, “Ah, here you can see the CEO of PymTech enjoying lunch with the company’s #1 worker! Hi, Dad! Hi, Ms. Pym!”

Hope waves nonchalantly at the visitors. “Hi.”

On the other hand, Scott jumps to his feet and claps his hands together. “Hey, everyone! Welcome aboard! It’s me, Ant-Man: Certified Avenger! Here’s my card. Check it.” He pulls out his Avengers Certification Card that he received in the mail following the Battle of Earth, much to Cassie’s amusement.

Among the crowd, Maria says, “Then I guess there’s no need for a resume.” The crowd lets her walk up to the duo, with Cassie quietly fangirling over the presence of this legend.

Swiftly, Scott salutes her and proclaims proudly, “Commander Hill! Reporting for duty, ma’am!”

Maria raises her eyebrows, befuddled by Scott’s loyalty to her authority, and says, “Thanks.”

Hope rolls her eyes at Scott and asks, “What is it, Hill?”

“I’m here to recruit you two for the New Avengers Initiative. We must prepare for the future, and you’re our best defense.” The crowd gasps in pleasant surprise while Cassie gives the duo her thumbs up.

Scott asks, “I thought that was Spider-Man. Everyone’s calling him ‘the next Iron Man’.”

Confused, Maria sighs and explains, “He’s busy.”

This worries Scott (for some reason, perhaps for irony’s sake). Looking around, he asks, “Who’ll be the next Iron Man then?”

Maria strokes the bridge of her nose in actual annoyance now and tells him, “I don’t know. Rhodey, maybe. That’s not relevant. What matters is that you’re needed.”

Scott shrugs his shoulders and tells her with an earnest smile, “I’m game.”

On the other hand, Hope tells her, “I’m… undecided.” Scott looks at Hope with a raised eyebrow. She explains, “I’ve got a business to run. Perhaps I can’t be on the field. But I can provide funding. Gadgets, maybe. Plus, I’ve got my Number One with you already.” She shoots Scott a wink, much to his delight.

Maria tells her, “Fair.” Looking at Scott, she gives him a handshake and says, “Welcome to the team… again. I’ll call you.”

“I’ll charge my phone.”

Suddenly, Maria feels a tap on her shoulder. She turns to see Cassie holding a small notepad and a pen in her hands. “Sorry, Ms. Hill, can I get your autograph please?”

“Sure thing.” She takes the pen and notepad from Cassie’s hands and happily signs it for her.

* * *

_Gladiator’s Workshop_

_April 4th, 2024, 22:45_

It’s dark in Hell’s Kitchen. And yet, surprisingly cleaner than usual thanks to the Snap.

Down by the Hudson, in a dull warehouse hidden from much of the world, Melvin Potter is hard at work designing some new costume, gimmick or goober for his next customer. He’s also waiting on a very important visitor.

Maria arrives a minute later, pulling open the front gate and walking in. As she closes it behind her, she says, “Good evening, Mister Potter. Thank you for having me.”

Wanting to get straight to business, Melvin asks, “What did you call me for?”

Maria takes a seat by a radio, listening to the Eighties hits softly playing. “Well, I was in town and I’m a busy gal. So I figured ‘why not visit one of the brightest minds in Hell’s Kitchen?’. And guess who that is.”

Melvin sighs, not knowing the answer. “I was referring to you, Melvin.” She looks around at the strange gadgets surrounding her: robotic stilts, speakers fashioned into an exoskeleton ala the Iron Man armor, literal frog-suits. “I know you made the Devil’s uniform. Very good stuff for a street-level hero.”

Melvin asks, appreciative of the compliments, “You want me to make you something?”

“I’m here to recruit you for the New Avengers Initiative.”

He stops what he’s doing and regretfully shakes his head. “Why not go to the Devil? He’s a hero.”

“I did. He refused.”

“And what about the Punisher?”

Maria purses her lips and tells him, “He… is another story. But you, you made them who they are. Why go to them when we can go to the source, and give him a chance to work with some Grade-A materials?” She crosses her arms and asks with a smirk, “So do you accept?”

Melvin nods his head and looks at her. “Hell yeah.”

“Good. Care for dinner on me?”

Putting down his tools, he tells her, “I like the Shake Shack a few blocks away. They make the best cheeseburgers and fries.”

“Then it looks like I sent my Agents to the right place. Because I like it too.” Two plainclothes agents walk into the workshop, carrying several bags of Shake Shack food. “Meet your fellow New Avengers, Melvin.”

He’s confused at first given their normal appearances. Suddenly, both of their skin turn green and their chins wrinkle up. Now, he’s even more confused than before. Not scared though. Maria says their names, “Talos and Soren.”

“You guys are aliens?” Maria smirks at his innocent attitude as he approaches the two Skrulls.

Talos admits, “Trust me, man. I thought the same thing when I first heard about Earth.”

“You two are so cool!” Melvin offers a high-five to Talos, which he returns with some confusion. As he places his arms around their shoulders “This is gonna be so cool!”

Opening a bag and grabbing a cup of soda, Maria tells him, “Glad to hear. Now, let’s dig in.”

* * *

_New Asgard_

_April 5th, 2024, 08:12_

Korg opens his favorite battle royale game while eating pizza with his best friend, Miek. He says to her, “Oy, look. A new season. Yeah, ain’t that awesome.” As he starts the game, a notification pops up, delivering delightful news:

**_UNLOCK THE NEW KORG AND MIEK SKINS_ **

_Both Available at Level 30_

Korg beams in excitement and points at the screen, “Hey, Miek, look! It’s us!” As he begins playing, someone knocks on their house’s door. He rises to his feet and says to Miek, “I’ll get it”, as he hands her the controller so that she can play.

He opens the door to see Maria Hill standing outside. “Hey, man. How you been?”

Maria tells him, “I’ve been well. And you two?”

Korg looks around and answers, “Just vibin’. No big threats to the cosmos n’ all that. Well, there was, but we dealt with it. Us Revengers.”

“That’s a good name. But I’ve got one more high-profile for you… I’m here to recruit you two for the New Avengers Initiative.”

“Oh, that sounds like fun. Hang on, lemme ask Miek.” Korg looks into the house and says, “Hey, Miek. This SHIELD lady’s askin’ if we want to join the Avengers. You in?”

Miek vocalizes a positive gurgle, telling him, “Yes”

He looks back at Maria and tells her, “Well, I’d say sign me up but, uh, rock fingers. Rather clunky. Plus, Miek’s got knife hands.”

“You don’t really have to sign anything. Just get ready for a call.”

Korg gives her two thumbs up and says, “Cool. Our number’s 47-”

Maria nods her head and tells him, “I know your number. Thank you.”

As Maria starts to leave, Korg grabs a box of pizza and asks, “Care for a slice?”

* * *

Maria looks on at the world around her as she sits on a hillside overlooking the calm waters of Oslofjord.

As she chews on her slice of pizza, she thinks to herself, _Mission accomplished ,_ _Nat’d be proud_.

 _Now, the real work begins_.


	3. The Danger Zone

_New Avengers HQ_

_April 12th, 2024, 08:00_

Dark clouds roll over the destroyed base. Alien warships take residence in the shadowy sky, their weapons pointed down at the Earth. Descending down to fulfill his conquest is the Mad Titan Thanos, carried by a yellow helicopter with his name on it.

He and his forces have begun an invasion on the planet, and only the New Avengers can stop him.

**War Machine! Ant-Man! Melvin Potter! Talos & Soren! Korg & Miek! And their leader: Maria Hill!**

As the team arms up in the ruined lobby, Maria loads a rifle and tells them, “Listen up! We’re currently under attack! Thanos has returned and his army is coming for the base’s Nuclear Energy Battery! If we don’t stop him, he’ll summon more of his army and we’ll be overrun. Understood?” Maria hears an assemblage of approval and raises her weapon to the sky. “Then let us fight! New Aveng-”

“ASSEMBLE!”

Maria looks at Melvin, who is clad in a yellow and silver battlesuit with sawblades on his arms and a chrome helmet on his head, and annoyedly tells him, “That’s my line.”

“I’m sorry, it’s just such an awesome thing to say!” Scott offers Melvin an earnest pat on the back.

Maria drops her face into her free palm and tells the team, “You heard him. Let’s go!”

* * *

The New Avengers split into three groups:

 _Korg, Miek, Talos and Soren head down a hole into the base’s maintenance tunnels._ Talos puts his fists up, ready to take down any threat that comes his way. “Damn Outriders. Bunch of savage animals with the brains of apes.”

Korg tells him jovially as ever, “Ey, I knew an Outrider once. Back in Uni.”

Talos gives the Kronan a confused look, asking, “Really?” Korg nods his head and Talos looks to his wife in astonishment. “Huh. The more you know.”

* * *

_Ant-Man and Melvin run through a hallway to the Quinjet Hangar Bay_. Scott sees that Melvin is a bit uneasy considering the mayhem all around. “Steady, man.” As the two take cover behind a toppled construction desk, Scott bumps his shoulder into Melvin’s arm and tells him, “Hey, you pulled off the ‘Assemble’ thing well.”

Behind his helmet, Melvin smiles. “Thanks. Was it as cool as when Captain America said it?”

Scott gives him two thumbs up, adding, “It was about on the same level, bro!”

Suddenly, frantic stomping can be heard rummaging through the Hangar Bay in search of life to stomp out.

Melvin asks rather sternly (as if to get his head in the game), “You hear that?”

Scott nods his head. “Yep… Let’s give these guys a show.” He pulls up his fist and clicks the trigger on his suit to shrink.

* * *

_Maria and Rhodey look out at the wastelands that were once the training fields by the Hudson River. Thanos sits on a throne of debris, awaiting Earth’s champion to face him and lose._ Maria glares at him, ready to get her hands dirty with Titan blood. She sternly tells Rhodey, “Stick with Scott and Melvin.”

“Are you sure? I know this guy can’t actually kill you, but it’d help to have backup.”

A smirk grows on Maria’s face. “Backup’s coming. She always does.” Hearing explosions of action erupting from the Hangar, Rhodey flies over to aid the two while Maria proudly marches forward to confront Thanos.

* * *

Carefully from around the corner, Talos spots a small gathering of Outriders climbing about the lower levels. He turns to his group and, with a smug smile on his face, tells them, “Leave this to me.”

Soren grabs at her husband’s arm, warning him, “Talos, this won’t work.”

“I’ve done it hundreds of times before. Don’t you worry, dear.” He then shifts from his natural Skrull body to that of an Outrider. He walks over to the enemies and growls to them in their natural tongue, “ _They went the other-_ ” Not believing him, one of the monstrous aliens swat him away. He turns back to normal and groans on the floor, “Ow.”

As the swarm of Outriders charge the group, Korg and Miek take the lead and attack them. Korg uses his baton to shatter the creatures upon impact while Miek slices them apart. As Soren carries her dazed husband to cover, she hears the Kronan valiantly yelling, “Rock n’ scissors! Rock n’ scissors!”

* * *

Back in the Hangar, Melvin is busy tearing through two Outriders with his arm-mounted saw blades, all while yelling, “Eat that!”

As the shrunken Scott leaps around the Outriders, punching them around with his superb strength, he is assisted by Rhodey’s arrival knocking away three Outriders. He asks Scott, “Need a hand?”

Scott jokes while punching at an Outrider’s head, “Always looking out for the little guys, huh?”

* * *

Walking past the ruins outside, Maria readies her finger to fire at Thanos the first chance she’ll get.

The Mad Titan sees her getting closer and solemnly speaks: “The last line of defense for this planet is a mere human. And not even the Captain.” He rises to his feet and readies his dual-bladed sword.

“I’m all you need to know about this planet. As long as one person stands to oppose you, you’ll never be victorious.”

Thanos tilts his head, amused by Hill’s bravery in the face of certain death. “One human is merely a single soul standing in my way.”

“Make that two.”, says a soothing female voice from above. The source drops down and kicks Thanos in the back of the head, bringing him down to his knee.

Maria grins at her savior, her girlfriend, her Natasha Romanov. She runs up to her and wraps the Avenger up in a warm hug. “What took you so long?”

“Hey, better late than never.”

As the two separate, Thanos growls in frustration. “Two humans make no difference over one.”

Natasha cracks her knuckles and taunts the purple madman, “Then let’s fix your calculations.” She looks at Maria with a proud smile on her face and tells her, “Let’s show him the ropes.”

* * *

While the Sakaaran fighting duo are busy with the swarm of Outriders, Soren leaves her husband’s side now that he’s back on his feet to lunge at an Outrider. She slides between its legs to get behind the creature and promptly snaps its neck with relative ease. She then stabs another Outsider in a weak spot on its chest with a pin, helping Korg and Miek finish off the small swarm.

Talos cheers her on with a fist pumping in the air. “Good work, Soren!”

Soren walks up to him and caresses his chin, telling him, “Thanks, hon.” The two run along out of the maintenance tunnels to face whatever awaits them upstairs.

Miek grumbles happily, to which Korg responds, “They are nice, yeah. For Skrulls.” The two follow after them quickly, not wanting to miss out on any action.

* * *

Rhodey grabs an Outrider by the throat and starts firing at it with his shoulder cannon, tearing the creature to shreds. But as he is distracted, another Outrider lunges at him from behind.

Scott sees this coming as he is standing on Rhodey’s shoulder and jumps at the creature, punching it as he grows to regular size.

The Outrider then goes flying in Melvin’s direction, who chops it in half with his saw blade. With their section of Outriders defeated, the trio share a round of high-fives. He says to Scott and Rhodey, “Now, let’s go check out the other areas.”, before running out of the Hangar.

Both of the established Avengers look at each other, impressed at the new guy’s fighting capabilities, before following after him.

* * *

Thanos swings his sword at Natasha, trying to strike her down, but she’s just too fast for him to hit. She dodges with excellent precision, letting the blade get just close enough to feel the air slice in its wake.

As the Mad Titan is distracted, Maria shoots at him from behind. Clearly, it’s only annoying him, helping to keep him off-balance. Natasha jumps onto his back and starts jabbing him with her electric batons, continuing to infuriate him more than actually wound him. Maria carefully fires at the Mad Titan's legs, keeping him in further disarray.

In a rage, Thanos roars and tosses Natasha away, right into Maria’s arms as she tosses her gun away to catch her. She asks the Avenger, “Are you okay?”

“Of course I am.”

Maria grins and tells Natasha, “That’s good to hear.” As the Mad Titan charges at the two, Maria says calmly, “Pause Thanos.” He stands there, frozen in place. Maria sets her down on her feet and holds her hands gently. “It’s good to see you again. To hold you again. This technology is really good at replicating that.”

Natasha looks around and tells her, “It is, for something made by a supervillain. Guess you have to hand it to Beck and his BARF.”

Maria laughs while Natasha smiles at her. “I miss you, Nat.”

“I know.”

Maria hugs the replicant, but jumps at the sound of Korg asking, “Commander? Are you alright out there?”

She lets go of Natasha and tells her, “See you again sometime.” The Black Widow leaps over a pile of debris and hides, just before any of the other New Avengers can see her. Maria tells her team, “Sorry! There was a glitch and the big guy froze.”

With a proud tone, Melvin revs up his saws, saying, “Good.” He then starts attacking the frozen Thanos, slashing at it and kicking it apart.

Maria sighs and tells everyone, “I guess that works to beat him.”

Scott retracts his helmet and points at a head of red hair peeking over the debris. “Is that Roma-”

“No”, Maria quickly says. “Just some flames. Background scenery. Nothing to fear.”

“Black Widow is here!”, the replicant-Avenger yells as she leaps out from her hiding spot and takes an action pose with her batons in hand.

Maria looks around, mumbling, “I, uh…”

Rhodey asks, surprised with a finger pointed at the replicant, “Why is she here?” Maria provides no answer, prompting him to ask again, “What’s going on?”

Gently pushing the replicant-Natasha aside, Maria explains, “It was a glitch, I told you already. That’s all you need to know.”

Korg steps forward and calmly states, “You miss her.”

Maria crosses her arms and states, “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Rhodey jumps in and tells her, “With all due respect, some of us do… We have to talk about this.”

Maria sighs and tells him, “No, we don’t… Break!” The battlefield comes apart, shedding the facade that was worn over the training area of the base known as the Danger Room. “Training’s over for the day. I’ll see you around.” She walks off, alone, much to the worry of her teammates.


	4. Circles of Trust

_New Avengers HQ_

_April 12th, 2024, 16:52_

Maria drinks a cup of coffee, going about her schedule as per usual as she sits in the base’s Main Lounge. The empty Main Lounge. Confused by the lack of presence, she goes about searching for her teammates.

Not in the Kitchen. Not in the Workshop. Not in the Living Area. Not in the Foyer… Outside the Foyer. All of them at the Gazebo by the River. She walks over as the sun begins to set and asks them all, “What are you all doing here?”

Scott says, “We have to talk. All of us.”

Maria leans on one of the pillars and tells them, “I’m glad you guys are team building. It makes me proud.”

Soren tells her, “You’re a part of the team too. Come, have a seat.” She pats a seat next to her and Maria reluctantly walks over to sit between her and Korg. “We’ve all been through a lot. And if we’re going to operate as a fighting force for good, we need to know each other.”

“This is about what you saw in the Danger Room, isn’t it? Trust me, it’s nothing big.”

The team sees it on her face that there is more to the story than what she is letting on. Beneath her stern demeanor, she is hurting inside.

Rhodey’s remote-controlled armor insists, “You don’t have to tell us everything. Just join us and listen.” Maria nods her head, offering her teammates a smirk.

Clearing his throat, he continues: “I suppose I’ll go first… I’m glad to be here. We’re heroes and all, but it isn’t very often one of us has to make the ultimate sacrifice. But Tony Stark did. My best friend gave his life to save the world… Universe, actually. And sure, it was meant to be according to Strange, but… part of me feels like I should’ve been the one to save him. After all, he gave me this life. He gave me his honest friendship for all these years, and I was happy to be there with him. Warts and all. And as much as talk about wishing I took his place… I’m happy to have met you guys.” The other New Avengers clap proudly for their friend. “So, who’s next?”

Korg softly raises his hand and says, “I’d like to go. And, uh, Miek, if you don’t mind, I can interpret for you.” Miek positively squirms about in her armor. “Okay, good. So, uh, we’re not exactly on a first name basis with everyone. I think that’s the term on Earth. We met on Sakaar, a warrior planet where exiles and other such lost peoples fight. A lot, as part of a Contest of Champions for this guy, the Grandmaster… We fought a lot of people, we won sometimes, and we lost sometimes. We fought to survive and we did. But people like us died because we had to survive.” Miek growls rather sadly and Korg translates for her: “Miek says she wishes she didn’t have to do that, and I feel the same way. She hopes, and I hope, that one day, there will be world peace. And we can all hang out as friends… though there’s no stopping that from happening now.” The team claps for them, happy to have heard what he said.

Talos raises his hand and says, “I can go. My wife and I’ve fought for many years to protect our people from the Kree. And it’s a fight that has taken a lot out of us. I fear that, one day, those maniacs will rule us all. But I also know that, if it ever comes close to something like that, I’ll have my friends here to back me up.”

Soren adds with a hand raised, “I’m also worried for our daughter. She’s grown up now, but the universe is such a big place. I’m scared of losing touch with her, I’m scared of her getting wrapped up in the wrong crowds, though I trust that we’ve raised her well.” The two Skrulls hug, much to the applause of their teammates.

Scott raises his hand and looks around before talking: “I’m the same way with my daughter. She’s a beam of sunlight, the greatest thing that ever happened to me. She’s tied with Hope, actually. They’re both the best parts of my life, being perfectly honest. But I’ve lost them before. Both jail and the Snap took me away from them for a long, long time. And yet, I always found my way back to them and I always made things right. I’m positive you two can do the same.”

Melvin clears his throat and says, “I’m scared of prison, and not for the obvious reasons. I’m scared of falling back into being a bad guy, doing bad things for people like Wilson Fisk. I don’t want my girlfriend Betsy to get hurt, and I don’t want to let her down either. With all of you guys, I don’t have to worry about that. Because we’re all heroes. I’m a hero, y’know?”

Scott pats his friend on the shoulder, happily telling him, “Damn right, man. That’s the team spirit.” Everyone has gone now. Everyone except… “Commander, if you want to share anything, you can. It’s all up to you.”

Maria sighs, mentally preparing herself to open up. “Natasha Romanoff and I… we were in love. She used to flirt with me, I used to flirt with her, it was nothing serious. Until one day, it was. She was on a mission, nothing major, just stopping an alien wormhole from summoning more and more of Loki’s army some eleven years ago. Things seemed grim, but we got each other through it… mostly Nat, she was out on the field after all. From there, we got closer. We couldn’t be very open about it, but everyone who knew - Fury, Cap, Clint, and a few others - they were all pretty supportive. But then Sokovia happened. That led to one thing, which led to another, and we couldn’t see each other. I tried to of my own accord, but she couldn’t let me find her.” She pauses to silently reflect before continuing, “Then, the Snap happened and I, well, died. Same with half the universe. But I came back. All thanks to her. I guess I owe it to her to do this. Still, every day, I wish she were here. I miss her.”

Soren places a hand on Maria’s shoulder and tells her, “I’m sorry. Truly, I am.”

Korg adds, “I can say she’d be proud of you, Commander.”

“Call me Maria please. All of you. After all, we’re on the same team here.” A smile forms on her face as she feels the tension in the air fade away.

Scott says, “You said it, boss. Thank you for being with us, Maria. It’s an honor.”

Maria rises to her feet and tells her fellow New Avengers, “Let’s hug it out and get to the Lounge. It’s getting chilly.” The New Avengers all stand and embrace one another in one big group hug. It’s warmer now, united as one.

* * *

_Volga River_

_April 13th. 2024, 03:24_

In the shadow of the night, evil rows down the Russian river in search of an ancient artifact capable of controlling the Soul. The driver of a speedboat looks at his hooded passenger and asks him with a heavy Russian accent, “Boss said the Stone was around here. You got a read on it?”

The man in the black cloak slowly points to the water and speaks with a cold, distant tone: “Yes. Deep in the Volga, we shall find it once more.” He marches to the edge of the boat and opens his palms to the river. “Leave that to me.”

He opens his palms into the river and concentrates heavily in order to obtain the Stone. Slowly, an orange glow rises from the waters. It enters his grasp and he holds it in his crimson red clutches. He remembers guarding it with his life, a punishment he thought from the heavens above for wielding an Infinity Stone in his worldly past. Now, with an equal power in his hand, he smiles and says, “The Benefactor will be pleased with our discovery, just as much as I am. Let us make our leave.”

With their mission accomplished, the boat speeds off into the night with their galactic treasure in their possession.


	5. Maskless Masquerade

_New Avengers HQ_

_April 27th, 2024, 17:30_

A glistening smile shines on the camera, saying enthusiastically to it, “I’m Christine Everhart with WHiH Newsfront, and we are LIVE here at the New Avengers Headquarters to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the Blip. People from across the galaxy have arrived to commemorate the day when Tony Stark valiantly gave his life to stop the Mad Titan Thanos from ending all life in the universe. Look, here’s Commander Maria Hill of SHIELD! Hello, Ms. Hill! How are you doing, you look so nice!”

She runs over to Maria, who is accompanied by Hope and Scott. They’re all dressed in fancy fashion, just for the special occasion. Maria says to Christine rather bluntly, “Thanks, I try sometimes. I’m here to have a good time, take a break from peacekeeping. I’ve been busy with the New Avengers, as you may have heard.”

Christine nods along, supportive of Maria’s current endeavors. “Yeah, uh-huh! Well, this is the perfect place to have a good time, talk with friends, and enjoy our lives!” As the three walk away, another guest arrives at the party in a limousine. In surprise, she asks the camera, “Now, who can that be?”

The facility is packed for the night with the halls crowded by joyful faces and visitors from all across the galaxy. They are all here to celebrate life, and how it resumes thanks to the Avengers’ bravery. She asks Agent Klein as he eats a plate of ribs, “Is she here?” He nods his head and points her to a room guarded by two silver-clad soldiers clearly from the nation of Symkaria.

Maria looks to Scott and Hope and tells them, “I’ll be quick.” The two understand and walk into the party, while Maria walks up to the door and the Symkarian soldiers let her in.

She sees the elusive Silver Sablinova sitting in a comfortable chair, drink in hand, and offers her a handshake. “Ms. Sablinova, a pleasure having you here.”

She shakes Maria’s hand with both a firm grip and an ice-cold look in her eyes. “Thank you for inviting me here. I believe you had something you wanted to talk about.”

Maria leans on a desk in the room and tells her, “Yes, the world is changing, everything is expanding and we must prepare for whatever comes next in this strange new world we live in. We’d like you to join the New Avengers.”

Downing her drink in one swift gulp, Silver adds, “Symkaria could use an Avenger. Surely hasn’t had one in the past. Besides, I owe you after what you and the Widow did for me in Budapest. Very well.”

“It’s an honor to be working with you.” Maria extends her hand for another handshake, anticipating her cold-iron grip.

Silver shakes her hand, but now Maria feels warmth in her grip. “I imagine so, but I must warn you that I will not always be present. I serve my people first.”

“That is understandable, and we can work with that. But for now, let’s just enjoy this party.” The two walk back out into the celebration, past aliens and deities united in conversation.

They see Scott and Hope talking with Peter Quill of the Guardians of the Galaxy. They laugh over astonishing tales from the past. The two walk away as he has to stop Rocket and Groot from fighting with an earthly Governor. They enjoy each other’s company, constantly smiling at each other and kissing one another.

They see Steve Rogers reuniting with Thor Odinson, although the God of Thunder is mightily confused as to how this random old man knows him so well. But the second he does recognize the Captain, he picks him up in a hug that could crush steel but recognizes and carries his friend’s frail figure.

They see… ugh. Norman Osborn, Founder and CEO of Oscorp Technologies, approaching them with a snide grin on his face. “Commander Hill, as I live and breathe.”

Maria offers him a handshake, as much as it disgusts her, and says to him, “Norman Osborn, welcome.”

Norman chuckles before correcting her, “Now, now, it’s Mr. Osborn.”

Maria sighs, though not enough to convey her annoyance to him, “Of course.” Silver crosses her arms and scoffs, frankly disgusted by Osborn’s presence.

“I’ve heard a fair bit about your New Avengers. They’re a proud little bunch, aren’t they?”

Maria shrugs her shoulders, answering, “I trained them well.”

“Well, how would you like to work with Oscorp to get some military-grade weaponry on your team’s hands? Think of it, jetpacks, weapons, little gizmos capable of really levelling the playing field. What do you say?”

Maria glares at him, as if trying to peer into his soul. “You have a bit of a reputation, Mr. Osborn, what with your technology falling into the wrong hands and your shady dealings with companies that have less than stellar reputations themselves. We’re sure that’s not you personally - we’ve had our fair share of issues with corporate espionage - but we unfortunately can’t work with that, so I’m afraid I’ll have to decline.” She walks off with Silver, not even giving him a glance.

Insulted, Norman tells her, “You’re missing out, Commander.”

Maria looks back at him and says, “We’re also already partnered. Sorry, Norman.”

Osborn glares at her, a fire burning on the inside. He waves goodbye, telling her with restrained anger in his voice, “That’s understandable. Perfectly understandable. Enjoy the party!”

Maria and Silver meet with Hope, Miek and Soren by the bar. Maria remarks about Osborn, “What a creep.”

Hope lets out a laugh, adding with a sip of her drink, “I’ll say.”

“Did your father ever meet him?”

Hope shakes her head. “Oscorp has never had much to offer, and the little they did everyone else could actually deliver on.”

The girls laugh with each other, and Soren raises her glass: “Cheers, as you say.” They each grab a drink and clink their drinks.

Maria steps away with a smile on her face, and taps her earpiece. “Status report?”

“I told you we’re not supposed to access this channel.” That voice, with its South African roots, sounds so familiar.

Another voice, metallic and inorganic, chimes in, “It’s the only way into the underground Storage Center. Just keep going.” It sounds even more familiar. Maria’s met this person before and she knows it.

With a frown on her face, Maria asks, “Who is this?”

The first voice exclaims angrily, “Ah, shit!”

“Sorry, Commander, a misclick. We’re just enjoying the food. It’s phenomenal. Mmm. Mmm!”

 _Oh God_ , Maria thinks to herself as she hears this robotic voice overact eating. _Him_ . _Ultron_. “How are you alive?”

“Not alive. Never alive… But I’m so glad you remembered. I’d hoped the world wouldn’t forget, even with Stark and his petulant Civil War.” Maria starts tracing the call on her watch. They’ve opened the underground Storage Center's vault door. “How long has it been since Sokovia? Nine years? I guess time flies when you’re surfing on the Internet."

Maria switches channels to the Agents that are present, and tells them, “We need to lock down the base, we have intruders! One of them is Ultron, I don’t know how, but he’s back. And there’s someone working with him, I can't tell who.”

The first voice calls in and tells her, “Here’s a hint.” Over the radios, Eurodance music vibes through the air:

“ _What is love?_

_Baby don’t hurt me,_

_Don’t hurt me,_

_No more!_ ”

Agent Klein calls Maria to inform her, “Commander, we’ve detained an uninvited guest. Caught him trying to break into the wine cellar.”

Maria opens the channel to her team and Melvin answers, “What’s the situation, boss?”

Now hurrying to the underground Storage, pushing past confused guests as she does so, she tells them, “We’ve got intruders trying to break into the underground Storage Center! New Avengers, assemble!”

Klaue enters the channel and jokes, “Ooh, look at Lil’ Miss Captain America!”

Amidst his laughs, Maria grits her teeth. “And can someone get this clown off the comms already?” She turns off her earpiece and bolts down into the Storage.

When she arrives, the vault has been opened. Everything appears to be in order. As Maria walks in more, she turns around as she hears air dissipate behind her. She aims her gun at the lanky intruder, clad in white with a bulbous helmet on his head. “Freeze. Don’t try anything stupid.”

The figure holds up a scroll of schematics and laughs, his voice cloaked in a deepening modifier. “Commander Hill. It’s been a while.”

Maria recognizes him, with his slow shifting in and out of this dimension. “You’re the Ghost.” She keeps her gun trained on the villain, anticipating anything. After all, SHIELD trained a few of them.

“One of them anyways.”

Suddenly, a gunmetal arm wraps around his neck before tossing him out of the Storage Center. He hides the schematics within his body as two microscopic fists send him flying into a wall on his right.

As he comes to a crash, he sees that Maria is far from alone; standing over him are Ant-Man, War Machine and the Wasp.

Hope retracts her helmet and asks, “Ava? What are you doing?”

The Ghost snickers sinisterly and shakes his head. “There’s no Ava here.” He then sinks into the ground, escaping the New Avengers despite their efforts to grab him.

Maria calls into the channels, “Dammit, the Ghost’s gone!”

“And we’re getting no readings on Ultron or Klaue… but we do still have our other intruder.” Slowly, Maria walks out of the vaulted area to find and question their detainee.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FYI: Silver Sable is basically the version of her from the Insomniac Spidey game.


	6. Soulful Discoveries

_New Avengers HQ_

_April 27th, 2024, 19:12_

Trevor Slattery sits alone in a white room, his wrists cuffed to a steel table. In steps Maria Hill, and he asks her, “Ah, is this the ‘good cop, bad cop’ routine?”

She raises an eyebrow to this, telling him, “No. We’re here to question you on your intentions tonight.”

“Okay, good, because that routine is scary, honestly. I’d rather do standup.”

Maria lightly shakes her head in disappointment before tiredly asking, “First, please tell us your name.”

A smile grows on Trevor’s bearded face as he explains, “My name is Trevor Slattery, I’m sure you’ve heard of me before.”

With a deadpan tone and look in her eyes, she says, “I haven’t. What were you trying to do at the wine cellar?”

“Well, it was last week, I got hired by some shady guys to break into the Avengers Base, I’d heard it was easy enough. Uh, that Ant-Guy did it. And he got out alive, so I figured, you pay me the right stuff and I’ll get right back to you.” He explains it with an almost giddy tone to his voice, much to Maria’s visible and growing annoyance.

“How much did they pay you?”

“About twenty kilos, forty grams, and fifty dollars.”

Maria pinches the bridge of her nose, taking in a deep breath. “Oh my God. Who paid you?”

Trevor shrugs his shoulders before answering, “I dunno, some guy called the Benefactor. Seemed scary on his own; ‘man on the phone’ deal, you know? And he’s involved with a bunch of people: criminals, dead people, monsters, I think.”

“Do you have any names?”

“Sure, that Klaue guy who blew up Wakanda, Ultron, the guy with the fishbowl head. He talked about Death or, like, the god of Death. A lot of people.”

Maria glares at him. “And what would be the purpose of all that?”

Trevor proudly raises his chin, explaining, “Can’t tell you. Unless you pay me.”

Maria’s fists clench as she harshly tells him, “We are not supplying you with drugs. Absolutely no.”

Rhodey steps into the room. “Maria, we’ve got a problem.”

She looks at him and asks, “What is it?”

He pulls out a holographic pad displaying surveillance footage of the Armory. _It shows Ghost grabbing a single set of schematics after the vault door opens. After that, he attempts to phase through the floor to no avail. A safety precaution for this very incident. Hearing someone approaching amidst the Haddaway music, he leaps for the floor outside of the Storage Center, lying in wait for Hill’s arrival_. “It seems the only thing those villains stole were schematics, for Tony’s Nano Gauntlet.”

Maria’s eyes widen before she sets her sights back on Slattery. Angrily, she grabs Trevor by his collar and pulls him up. “What does your Benefactor need the Infinity Gauntlet for?”

“How should I know?”

Her grip tightens on him. Maria says to him through gritted teeth, “He sent you here for it, so start talking!”

“He needs them to control the Stone!”

“What stone?”

“Soul Stone! He wants to use the Soul Stone!”

Maria breathes out through her nose and loosens her grip on him, asking more gently, “Why?”

“I don’t know, honestly, I don’t know!”

She lets go of Trevor before walking out of the interrogation room with Rhodey by her side. “Get the Guardians, Carol, Fury, whoever on the phone. And round up the team.”

* * *

In the base’s Conference Room, the many New Avengers sit before a series of holograms. From across the galaxy, Nick Fury, Captain Marvel and Star-Lord are present through projections of light. Star-Lord waves to the others, “Yo!”

Carol asks, standing at ease, “What happened?”

Maria takes a sip of bottled water before asking, “Have any of you come into contact with any of the Infinity Stones in the past few days, weeks, months?”

Quill shakes his head as he looks around what is most certainly his ship. “Nope.”

Nick Fury adds, “There aren’t any with the Kree, nor with us for that matter.”

Quill continues, “Does this Benefactor have any means of getting to space? Because I doubt the Grimace would’ve plopped ‘em down on Earth.”

Maria explains to the starbound heroes, “Our detainee, Mr. Slattery, mentioned the God of Death in connection with the Benefactor and their associates.”

From behind Quill, Thor chimes in, “Goddess. That’d be my sister. Only thing is she’s dead. Impaled under the weight of Surtur’s flaming Twilight.” He waves goodbye to the team before allowing a perturbed Quill to reclaim his role as Team Rep.

Maria says, “Well, so were Ultron and Klaue.” She looks off, away from the space heroes, telling them, “None of this makes sense. Does anyone even know what the Soul Stone does?”

Quill raises his hand and explains, “Not really. I think it can take our souls out of our body? Spider-Boy described it the way he usually does.”

Talos and Soren laugh amongst each other, with the former saying, “I can see that.”

Maria crosses her arms and says, “Whatever it is, we need to find this Benefactor and stop him before he can do whatever it is he has planned.”

“We’ll be keeping our ears out for anything out of the ordinary. See ya!” Quill offers Maria a salute before tuning out of the meeting.

“Be careful, Commander. Same with you, team.” Carol also tunes out, offering the New Avengers a supportive head nod.

Fury looks over the team with a stern look across his brow. “So this is the New Avengers, huh? Not exactly my Initiative, but I trust you, Hill.” He smiles at Maria, knowing and trusting her tactical prowess and know-how.

“Thank you, Fury.”

Giving Maria a thumbs up, he says to her, “Whoever this Benefactor is, you’ve got him. New Team…” He sits up and glares at them with his trademark stare. “I’ve got my eye on you.” And like that, he tunes out.

Korg says aloud, “He’s so cool.”

Melvin looks over at him and adds, “Yeah, but scary.”

Maria stands at the edge of the table and says to the New Avengers, “Listen up! We need to be on our A-game here. We’re dealing with an Infinity Stone situation, coupled with a band of villains teaming up. I know we’re not the ideal team, and this situation is rather new to us, but we’re Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. All of us. We have to be ready for anything. And I trust you all to do so.” As the team collectively smile in support of her leadership, she smiles back at them. “New Avengers, assemble!”

Hope raises her hand and Maria looks at her. “If this situation is as bad as it sounds, it might be for the best that I’m here. The more the merrier.”

Rhodey nods his head, “Likewise.”

“Sounds good to me. Let’s get some sleep, team.” The group disassemble and retreat to their rooms, save for Silver and Miek who are tasked with taking Trevor to a holding cell.

* * *

Maria also decides to stay up, walking over to the Living Area. Sitting at the desk that Natasha called home for the five years after the Snap, she speaks into a small microphone: “Give me information on the Soul Stone.”

On a holographic display, it tells of the Stone’s reported power and abilities, its origins on Vormir, the required sacrifices - Natasha and Gamora - offered to attain it.

Maria reaches out to the holographic Black Widow, her love, as she stands triumphantly in action. Reading up and trying not to pass out, Maria asks herself, _Where are you, Nat? What are you capable of in that Stone of yours?_


	7. The Waking of The Souls

_They remember falling. As their bodies crashed against gravity, their Souls had become the energy fueling the mysterious Stone. It would be used to destroy, and it would be used to recreate. Their names are Gamora and Natasha._

_And with two in one timeline, their souls and their worlds would merge together. They’d bring with them all the other old ghosts lost to Death. Call it what you may; Hel, Valhalla, Hades, Heaven, the Ancestral Plane, the Afterlife. When the two Soul Stones coexisted, all of these worlds and more merged into one._

_The Soulworld_

_May 3rd, 2024, 02:15_

Two once-coldhearted warriors travel across the lengthy fields of this ethereal plane. Even at night, they glow under the orange light of the Soul Stone. These warriors, sacrificed for the sake of its power, feel the unworldly flowers at their fingertips, unlike anything they ever felt before. In their heads, a warning from several weeks prior echoes. A warning issued by the former King T’Chaka of Wakanda:

“ _There is a plot afoot to tear down the boundaries between life and death. You two must prepare for anything as Hela Odinsdottir and her earthbound Cabal are at the center of this plot. Be ready for anything and everything…_ ”

The two march onward through the fields, headed for a car illuminated in a blue shine of its own.

Upon arriving, Natasha smiles at the young driver, recognizing his scraggly Sokovian face. “Hello, Pietro.”

He looks at Natasha in surprise. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Me neither. Wanda misses you by the way.”

Pietro chuckles to himself, as he misses her too. Still, he’s got a task so he tells the two, “Get in, ladies. We’ve got no time to lose.” Natasha and Gamora sit in the backseats of the car, closing the doors behind them. Once their seatbelts are fastened on, Pietro steps on the gas and the vehicle dashes across the realms of the Soulworld in a cerulean blaze. “King T’Chaka told me of someone coming, but I’m truly shocked. Thought Barton would get here before you.”

Natasha looks out at the Soulworld from her window, explaining, “I’ve been told by a friend that these are confusing times. But you get used to them.”

Pietro looks up to his rear-view mirror at the green woman sitting next to the Black Widow. “Where you from, lady Hulk?”

Gamora raises one of her eyebrows, not knowing whether she should feel insulted or honored, before telling him, “My name’s Gamora and I’m a friend. I was raised by Thanos, and he killed me for the Stone.”

“And what happened to you, Natasha?”

“Somewhat the same situation. I had to die to let Clint get the Stone. It was necessary. Whatever it took to save everyone. But that’s in the past. We’re here.” The car speeds through more of the Soulworld, past Valhalla to its dark counterpart Hel.

They stop outside of a seedy looking nightclub, red spotlights beaming into the cloudy and starless sky. The two women step out of the car and Natasha says to their silver-haired driver, “Thank you, Pietro.”

He looks over at the entrance to the club and tells her, “Be careful in there.”

A playful smirk appears on Natasha’s face. “You should be telling the guys inside.” She steps away from the car and Pietro drives off to places unknown.

Gamora steps up to the nightclub’s bouncer, Erik Killmonger, and tells him, “We’d like entry inside please.”

Erik points at Gamora with a smile, telling her, “You’re good to go, but you… The Black Widow.” He lets out a raspy chuckle, having heard of her heroics. “Didn’t take you for the type to like fire and brimstone.”

Natasha glares at the sinister soldier. “Save it, N’Jobu. We’re expected.”

While Killmonger crosses his arms, Yondu steps out of the club with sunglasses over his eyes. “‘Ey! Come on in, ladies!” He hurriedly ushers them into the dark club. All over the place, roguish folk have come to make shady deals, drink their worries away, reminisce on their old sins. Yondu takes a second look at Gamora and tells her, “It’s good to see ya, girl. How’d Quill been before you got here?”

“He was fine, but he took my death harshly. Lucky for him, there’s another me hopping around the galaxy now.” Gamora looks over at Natasha, her lips pursed as she glances away in some sort of hurt. “Is something wrong, Nat?”

Natasha nods her head, telling the two aliens ( _Is that the proper nomenclature? Am I the alien here?_ , she asks herself) “I’m fine. Nice to meet you.”

The finned pirate sits down at a table and his two associates take their seats too. “The name’s Yondu. And I have heard of you and your little band of heroes, missy. Good job showing that horned joker Loki the ropes.” Natasha smiles, remembering that little battle. Maria’s caring guidance and voice during the mission’s culmination. Her careful efforts to distract her from the oncoming nuke. Quickly, she has to snap herself back into the moment as Yondu asks, “So what can I get you two?”

Natasha pulls out a couple of pictures. _They depict a pale duchess of death, with green and black royal garb and a horned helmet_. “We’re searching for Hela. The Goddess of Death. King T’Chaka and his ancestors have uncovered a plot by her to escape Soulworld, and she’s working with a dastardly cabal on the planet Earth. We need to stop her. Have you heard anything?”

Yondu shoots her an inquisitive look. Almost hurt, he asks with a raised eyebrow, “You think I’m associated with her or something…?”

Natasha shakes her head, reassuring him, “We’re not trying to accuse you of any-”

“… Because you’d be right! Kinda… That crazy she-devil’s been recruiting ‘round these parts for the past couple days. She tried to get me, I told her to get stuffed. But she’s got some numbers to her legions: the Dark Elves, the creepy-ass Chitauri, those Sakaarans I tore apart with my flyin’ arrow, and just about anyone who's got unfinished business with the land of the livin’! She’s nuts.”

Natasha asks, “Where would she be now?”

Yondu looks about the club, curious of who might be listening in. He tells the two, “I heard she’s been lookin’ for a good spot to get out of the Stone, and the best one’s been said to be the Pearly Gates up North. Is that all you need?”

Gamora and Yondu shake hands. “Thank you for your help, Yondu. It’s greatly appreciated in the service of the universe.”

“And my payment?” Natasha plops a suitcase full of precious materials down on the table. He opens it, looking at its contents’ violet luminescence. He takes it down to his side and tells the two, “Pleasure doin’ business with ya!”

The duo dash out of the nightclub, and Natasha remarks, “We’ve got to be quick, maybe do some scouting around the Pearly Gates.” Gamora points out a pair of high-speed scooters parked outside, so they hop onto them and rev up their engines.

Quickly, the two zoom across the Soulworld in search of the Pearly Gates: two crystalline monoliths at the edge of the Soulworld, resting against the sunny skies of the world outside the Stone. The doorway to the land of the living. It certainly reminds them of Vormir, an inversion of the bright and dreamlike architecture that they see within the expanses of the Soulworld.

Natasha and Gamora had been studying it for their own intentions for the better part of a year, and how it could serve as a means of returning to life. They'd already gone as far as to send the Stone to Earth as it was the home to Maria Hill and the many other heroes capable of thwarting Hela and the Benefactor's schemes.

Suddenly, they see it over the horizon. The gargantuan Pearly Gates swarmed by devilish creatures, and villains seeking resurrection to resume their malicious plots.

Standing at the forefront of this army is the Goddess of Death, Hela herself, looking onward at the glowing red eyes staring down on her from the skies above. As she prepares to escape the Soul Stone with her Benefactor’s assistance, a minuscule and deformed black-and-yellow creature tugs on her cape. “We have company on the way…” Leaving dust in their wake, the two riders are approaching.

The wind begins to howl. The Soul Stone is opening, and Hela can only smile an evil grin as she informs the Yellowjacket, “Let them come. They will not halt my conquest.”


	8. The Witching Hour

_Rikers Island_

_April 27th, 2024, 20:15_

The prisoner looks at a rabbit in a snowstorm, reflecting on his actions as the feared Kingpin. Does he regret them? No.

A guard opens his cell door and informs him sternly, “Mister Fisk, you have a visitor.”

Not bothering to look at him, he tells the officer, “Send him in.”

“‘Her’, Wilson. The name’s Maria Hill, and I’m with SHIELD and the New Avengers.” She walks inside and crosses her arms, staring down the former crime boss.

Seemingly unintimidated, he looks at her and asks, “What do you want?”

Maria pulls out a folder full of records, photographs and files. She points at it and tells Fisk, “If the prison records are to be accurate, you have been contacted by an individual representing a man who calls himself the Benefactor. Is that correct?”

* * *

_Ravencroft Asylum_

_April 28th, 2024, 09:42_

Frantically yet without panic, serial killer Cletus Kasady shakes his head. He glares at Maria and yells at her, “I ain’t gotta tell you NOTHING!”

Maria drinks out of a coffee mug, telling the lunatic, “You do, Mr. Kasady. Your defensive attitude alone shows that you were approached by the Benefactor. As does this folder.” She holds up the folder and boredly waves it in the air.

Kasady slams his handcuffed fists down onto the table before him, screaming, “I never met the guy! He sent people FOR him! Offered me a chance to wreak some real carnage! I accepted!” He taps at his chin before calmly adding, “Then, I remembered I’m stuck in this DUMP… for now.”

Maria nods her head, confused by his insane logic. “What specifically was his plan?”

* * *

_Seagate Penitentiary_

_April 29th, 2024, 13:56_

Justin Hammer laughs, almost happy to brag: “He wanted an army outta my brand. I can see why he approached me, since Hammer Industries is ESPECIALLY well-renowned in the arms-n-armor business now that Tony’s worm food.”

Maria grits her teeth at the “worm food” comment and feels the urge to hit Hammer. “Did they accept?”

He leans back in his chair and answers with a casual look on his face, “Until my lawyers get here to let me know, then I don’t know.”

Maria smirks at him and starts reading from the folder, “No need to worry about either of those, we’re currently investigating them and a multitude of other corporations who may have associations with the Benefactor. And in our investigations, we’ve found criminal connections with them AND your lawyers. Needless to say, your best bet would be to cooperate with us.”

* * *

_San Francisco County Jail_

_May 1st, 2024, 11:55_

Sonny Burch shakes as he remembers the Benefactor to the best of his abilities. “He’s a man with many interests. Right before that Thanos fella snapped his fingers and wiped out half the planet, he bid on PymTech’s quantum technology that I was supposed to get from Hope Van Dyne. Course I didn’t get it; I got stopped by Scott Lang’s Three Musketeers and lost my restaurant license… But then, just a few weeks back, he offered me a chance to work with him on a new project. A plot to rule the world. I declined politely, being in prison. But for what it’s worth, just know that this Benefactor is a dangerous man with friends in very high places.”

Reading through the folder, Maria remarks, “Sounds like you got pretty close with this Benefactor.”

Sonny shakes his head and corrects her, “I met his agent to make the deal of the bid. Looked into his history, and he was associated with this place in New York City. ‘Harlem’s Paradise’.”

* * *

_Harlem’s Paradise_

_May 3rd, 2024, 02:35_

“Hey, I’ve got rights!”, Turk Barrett yells as Maria forcibly escorts him up to the rooftop. Sitting on top of the building is the Quinjet, lying in wait with the New Avengers in tow.

Maria grabs at his collar and demands of him, “I’m only gonna ask this one time: Who? Is? The Benefactor?”

He puts his hands up in defeat, telling her, “None of your damn business!”

“If we don’t stop him, it’ll be everyone’s damn business!”

The door to the rooftop opens once more, bringing the club’s owner outside. He sighs to himself, “Sweet Christmas” before rushing over to Maria and Turk. Just as she is about to throw a punch in Turk’s face, Luke Cage grabs her arm and holds her up in the air… and yet, she’s still hanging onto Turk. “Let go of that man, and come into my office.”

Knowing that a fight with THE Luke Cage would be stupid, she smiles and releases Turk from her grip. “Run along, Turk.”

“You got it.” Quickly, Turk runs to the doorway to escape any more heroes interrogating him for the night.

Luke lets go of Maria too, allowing her to dust herself off. She crosses her arms and tells him, “I’m sorry, Mister Cage, but this is important.”

Luke looks down at the bustling streets below. He can still hear the music inside, with people enjoying their lives in rhythm and dance. He turns to Maria and explains, “I know it is. The Benefactor sent his thugs to try and convince me too, and I told them to get lost.”

“What did he want?”

Luke leans on the Quinjet and explains to her, “He said he wanted to rule the world with all his buddies - Roxxon, AIM, the Maggia, everybody. But I don’t want that. I just want to keep Harlem safe, and something tells me that’s not on this Benefactor’s agenda. So if you see him, give him hell.”

Maria smirks at him and tells him, “Thank you for your cooperation, Luke. And thank you for protecting Harlem.”

As she starts walking back into the Quinjet, he tells her, “Stay safe out there!” He turns to leave too, but then he remembers he has a question he has: “Wait, is War Machine with you guys?”

Maria waves into the ship and clanking footsteps approach the outside. Rhodey asks in his armor, “You called?” He looks down and sees Luke. With a smile on his face, the two shake hands jovially. Two legends to one another.

Luke smiles at Rhodey, telling him with a pat on the shoulder, “It’s great to meet you, man!”

“Same here, bro! Hey, you keep Harlem safe!”

Luke nods his head and says, “You know I will! Hey, can I get a picture with you?” He pulls out his phone and hands it to Rhodey.

“Bet. Maria, can you…” He holds out the phone for her to hold.

“Of course.” As the two pose with one another, thumbs up to the camera, Maria takes the picture and returns it to Luke. She also notices a smile on her own face now.

Luke pats Rhodey on the shoulder and asks, “Come again some time?”

Rhodey laughs and happily tells Luke, “If I got the time, man! You take care!” The two walk back into Quinjet, and the ship takes flight as Luke returns to his place of business.

Talos asks the returning teammates, “What did he say?”

Maria elaborates, “Aside from asking for a selfie, the same things the other twenty people we’ve questioned said.” She sits with her teammates and sighs. “We’ve been chasing this guy for the past week, and still nothing from the usual criminal circuits. There has to be someone who's on his call and actually accessible.”

Rhodey shrugs his shoulders and asks, “Have you tried Osborn?”

Maria hums to herself, thinking about it. “He’s a creep, but he doesn’t strike me as an affiliate of a superhuman criminal conspiracy. For all their screw ups, Oscorp’s reputation is otherwise clean.”

“But he is a man with a shady past, and a man with resources.” Rhodey opens his hand to the ceiling and a hologram of his actions displays. “Oscorp has spent the past five years trying to beat out Stark Industries after Tony left the public eye. Acquiring the same materials, trying to buy out his business associates, he even had the guts to move into Stark Tower when we moved upstate. He’s a weasel if I’ve ever seen, and one that this Benefactor would probably love to work with.”

It doesn’t take much to convince Maria about Osborn’s evils, so she declares, “Then, let’s go give him a-”

Her phone begins to ring. _Speak of the Devil and he shall call you_. She annoyedly answers the phone, “Osborn. How do you have this number?”

“I’m being attacked by supervillains! They’ve broken into the Oscorp Power Plant and they’re demanding I build them a weapon! L-like a GLOVE! You have to save me!” He sounds panicked, and someone can be heard trifling in the background.

Blankly, Maria tells him, “Okay.” She almost hangs up the phone before asking, “Wait, why would they tell you their plan before captu-”

“HURRY!” He hangs up the call and Maria rushes to the Quinjet’s copilot seat.

The ship blasts through the cloudy night skies of New York City straight to the outer limits of Queens. The Power Plant and its expanse of smokestacks and electrical transformers are producing a great deal of smoke and energy at the moment. Odd considering that the Power Plant should be closed by now…

The Quinjet quietly descends upon the deserted parking lot, and the team steps out of the ship. Hope remarks, “Looks like everyone went home for the night… Except that guy.” She points out a lone Dodge Charger parked by the entrance to the Smelting Facility.

Maria recognizes that car, having heard Coulson and his team describe it to her a few years back. It almost frightens her, but she figures that if the driver is nearby, then this situation is truly dire.

* * *

_Oscorp Smelting Facility_

_May 3rd, 2024, 02:53_

The team quickly and silently enter the building through its shattered front doors. They follow the path of light destruction into the center of it all. They hear people talking to one another as hot metals are cooled off with water.

It’s hard, but they can see below that there is a small gathering of supervillains present. Men in Iron Man-esque armors, brutes with sinister intent, android bodies with gaudy designs, gangsters and hucksters from all across the globe, and drones guarding from above. All of whom with different goals, all gathered to watch the creation of a new Infinity Gauntlet, and its usage in conjunction with the Soul Stone.

A red-robed figure with a domed helmet on his head - the new Mysterio - tells the worried Norman, “It’s looking good. Just like the real deal… Gotta hand it to you, Osborn, when you put your best foot forward like you have for us tonight? You’d almost put Tony Stark to shame if he didn’t do that himself.”

The Red Skull, with the Soul Stone in his hand, tells his associates, “Make it quick. The Avengers will be on their way soon enough.”

An echoing laugh escapes the man with an iron mask welded onto his face: Mordis. With glowing eyes, he looks at the Red Skull and tells him, “If that bunch of losers is supposed to be the Avengers, then call me the King of Attilan… Actually, don’t.”

The Skull looks to the shadows and calls out to another one of his associates, “Blackheart. Do as you and your minions must.”

A demon made of shadow - Blackheart - emerges from the blackness of night with a gang of cultists by his side. He grabs the still-hot Gauntlet and fastens it onto his hand. “With pleasure.” Red Skull hands him the Soul Stone and he plants it in its designated section of the Gauntlet.

Melvin worriedly tells Maria, “Okay, now’s the time to strike.” The team moves forward, ready for a fight.

Blackheart raises the Gauntlet into the air and his cultists aim their palms at it, sending dark energy into it.

“ _Rise, Hela! Mors dea est, filliam dei! Redi a Soulworld cum vivis et venite hoc planum! Vocamus potentiam tuam et in vestigio! RISE!_ ”

The Soul Stone glows and an orange wormhole manifests in the air. A pale hand clutches at the outside world with sharp overgrown nails. “Finally, took them long eno- Hey!” The hand is yanked back into the portal, its owner screaming, “Unhand me, mortals! You cannot stop me!”

“You’re not going anywhere, Hela.”

As the New Avengers reveal themselves to the unphased criminals, Maria freezes once she recognizes that other voice from within the portal: “Nat?”

Natasha says hurriedly, “Now, Gamora! Go, go, go!” Two women wrapped in purple hoods and robes fall out of the portal while wrestling with Hela.

At the same time, dozens of spirits fly out of the wormhole and take flight to places unknown.

“Blackheart, get rid of these two!”

The demon aims the Gauntlet at Hela’s attackers, and he fires a beam of orange light at one of them, sending them flying through the ceiling into the stars above.

Distracted, Hela is kicked away by the remaining purple hooded figure… Gamora. She looks around with a smile, only to lose it once she realizes, “This isn’t the Benata-”

Hela throws a punch in Gamora’s face, knocking her into the New Avengers’ path. “No, it isn’t. Welcome to Earth, child.”

Norman steps up to Hela, shaking as he looks at her. Suddenly, as if in a snap, he stops shaking. His fear drops from his face to make way for a sleazy grin. He kneels before the Goddess of Death, “My lady. I welcome you.”

Hela smiles upon Osborn, telling him, “Thank you for freeing me, Benefactor. Let the end begin.” She looks around at the dark building before glaring at the New Avengers with a smug smirk and open hands.

Maria groans angrily as she says aloud, “You have got to be kidding me. Why, Norman?”

Osborn looks around, confused while telling her, “There’s no Norman here. Besides, we’ve no need for him. I’m everything he wasn’t.” He glances at his various partners in crimes and raises his fists into the air, screaming, “Kill the Avengers!”

The villains start firing on the Avengers, prompting several of them to take cover. War Machine deals with the two Iron Man copycats - the Crimson Dynamo and the Titanium Man - in aerial combat while Korg and Miek fight off several hired goons. Melvin, Scott and Hope also engage in battle against the Taskmaster with overwhelming strength against his impeccable skills.

Maria shoots at Hela, only for the Goddess of Death to fight back by throwing swords in her direction. Before they can strike her, Gamora disposes of the swords by grabbing them and tossing them aside.

Immediately after, Mordis begins firing at the two, prompting them to take cover behind a fallen piece of the ceiling. Maria looks at Gamora and asks, ‘Who are you and where’s Nat?”

“The name’s Gamora, and Natasha’s currently in deep space. I’ll explain later.” As Mordis stops firing fire from his eyes, Maria looks over at Silver and the two tase him in unison, knocking the evil Inhuman to the ground. They then start firing their guns up at Crimson Dynamo and Titanium Man, distracting them from Rhodey enough to allow him to sucker punch them both.

In the ensuing chaos, as Blackheart attempts to escape into the shadows, he bumps into another dark figure hidden away. He turns to see who, and primally hisses at his opponent… The Ghost Rider.

As Blackheart fires the Infinity Gauntlet into the Rider’s chest, the man with the flaming skull only moves forward, barely phased. 

Maria looks at him from behind Gamora, and shudders in shock. She’s finally meeting him in person, and he’s just as efficient as Coulson reported.

Once he is close enough, the Rider grabs Blackheart’s Gauntlet and tears it free from his hand, thus closing the wormhole in the air. Then, with his free hand, he grabs the demon by the throat and attempts to burn him in his fiery grip.

While the villains flee in fear of his vengeance, the New Avengers can only look on in awe. Melvin says, frozen in horror and strangely impressed, “I guess the Devil’s got some competition.”

Blackheart pulls himself away from the Ghost Rider and kicks him aside. This causes him to lose his grip on the Gauntlet and it goes flying right into Norman Osborn’s hands. Holding it, Norman is teleported away in a black mist courtesy of the Red Skull along with Hela, Mysterio, Crimson Dynamo, Titanium Man, Mordis, and a large portion of the criminals and Souls who hadn’t fled yet. Blackheart too retreats into the shadows once more, his red eyes glowing before fading away.

The New Avengers gather together and approach the purple-hooded figure and the Ghost Rider. He sheds his flames and assumes his human form of Robbie Reyes. Hope asks, shaken by the whole experience, “What the hell was all of that?”

Robbie explains with a scowl on his face, “Blackheart’s trying to end the world, and so’s Hela. I need to go stop them before they actually do so. C’mon, Gamora. Let’s ride.” He nods his head at Gamora, but she is rather hesitant. She looks at the New Avengers with a positive gaze. She trusts them.

Maria grabs Robbie’s shoulder much to his frustration and says to him, “Listen, kid. I’ve read the reports on you and I know you’re skilled, but you can’t do this alone.”

Robbie shrugs Maria off and ignores her team’s immediate urge to fight him in response. He explains, “That’s how I do my best work. Besides, I’m not alone, I’ve got Gamora with me. Try and keep everyone out there from losing their heads while we go save the world.”

Gamora floats over and tells him, “It’s not too late, Robbie. We can stop them together. As a team.”

“They’d be slowing us down.”

“Natasha’s told me otherwise about these people.” She looks at Maria and nods her head.

Robbie sighs, tired of arguing when the fate of the world is at stake. “Fine. I’ll work with you people.”

The united heroes head out of the Smelting Facility before boarding the Quinjet. As Robbie carefully drives his car into the ship, Maria asks Gamora at the front of the ship, “You’ve talked to Natasha?”

Gamora nods her head and smiles at Maria, telling her, “I have. She misses you.”

“Where is she?”

“Currently on Xandar. But don’t worry, I trust that my friends will bring her here in no time.”

A smile forms on Maria’s face as she looks up at the starry night sky in all of its infinite vastness.

Up there in outer space, Natasha Romanov is there. Down here on planet Earth, Maria Hill is here.


	9. The Aim Of It All

_Barbuda | AIM Island_

_May 3rd, 2024, 05:30_

Stubby legs have spent the last nine years running AIM (a subsidiary of GRUMBL). Following the death of Aldrich Killian and his posthumous exposure as a supervillain, control was handed over to the one man capable of reforming such an organization such as AIM (a subsidiary of GRUMBL). And that man’s name was George Tarleton, otherwise known to the public as the ~~menacing~~ most friendliest being alive, MODOK.

Sitting on his floating golden throne, MODOK awaits the arrival of his fellow Cabal members in his throne room. They appear in a burst of black mist, courtesy of Hela, who raises an eyebrow in confusion at this man’s portly appearance.

MODOK waves at the villains, telling them with a smile on his grotesquely ginormous face, “Welcome, friends. You’re expected!”

Norman steps forward, rubbing his hands sinisterly, with Hela, Blackheart and the Red Skull by his side. “Thank you for providing us refuge, MODOK.” He also looks down at the Gauntlet, still confused. Right when they escaped the Oscorp premises and arrived at the edge of Staten Island, the Soul Stone stopped glowing at its full luminescence. It's still orange, sure, but it doesn't have that magic glow to it. "Also, we have to get this thing looked at. Might be broken."

Hela glances away, pondering what machinations her father, T'Chaka and the two women who fought her have planned. 

MODOK hovers over and wraps Osborn up in a hug (not an easy task considering his T-Rex arms), adding, “It’s all in the service of conquering the world, after all.” As MODOK mentions this, a metal man descends into the throne room with the criminal Helmut Zemo in his arms. Ultron lets out a mechanized chuckle, gleeful that the dreaded Cabal has been assembled in its entirety.

**The Red Skull. Baron Zemo. MODOK. Ultron. Norman Osborn. Blackheart. Hela.**

Hela looks aside with a smirk on her face, as if to contain laughter at the thought of conquering Midgard. “Yes… Conquest is the plan. But I must ask, what are we doing here of all places?”

Norman plants a hand on her shoulder before explaining, “Hela, People from all across the world have come here, answering our rallying cries for help. It’s time we introduce ourselves and make some friends before we rule the world.” The seven march to a balcony where loud chatter can be heard. As the sun is slowly rising, evil from all corners of the globe and even beyond have gathered in the darkness.

MODOK looks down and, with a microphone in his little hands, bellows to the villains below: “Greetings, my fellow Masters of Evil! You may be wondering why we have all gathered here today! To answer that, you should’ve read the flyer a bit more carefully, it’s crystal clear!” Him and Osborn let out a flurry of laughter, which several criminals down below join in. Hela sighs, embarrassed at the antics of these two could-be conquerors.

“But aside from wanting to appease the powers-that-be up at GRUMBL regarding our decreasing employment numbers post-Blip, you have all been gathered here because this world needs us. The Avengers failed us, and that’s just the precise excuse we need to let the world know that it doesn’t need revenge. It needs MASTERS! It needs our control! And, quite frankly, we’re the best this world could want!” The crowd cheers in approval at MODOK’s words. “I now give the mic to Norman Osborn, founder of Oscorp and our dearest Benefactor!”

He hands the microphone to Norman, who accepts it with a wide, toothy grin. “Thank you, Mo. My friends, yes, this world has changed. Six years ago, a mad titan from the stars came down and killed half the universe. And the Avengers failed to stop him. Now, Stark and his band of friends are not deserving of praise, but the least they could have done was save us. So now, it’s up to us, the Masters of Evil, to do some good and take the world for ourselves. We will march down to the White House and start our conquest with the United States of America. From there, with one of the most vital networks in our hand, we shall expand to the other countries of the world. And soon enough, we will conquer the planet as its rightful rulers. Sound like fun? C’mon, tell Papa Osborn what you think!”

The crowd cheers him on, pumping their fists in the air and calling for victory.

MODOK looks over to his army of ~~beekeepers~~ mercenaries, and sees their glee. “I can speak on behalf of AIM when I say we’re all in.”

From down below, a ghastly suit in a crowd of evil business people yells to the balcony, “The Maggia stands by your mission!”

Red Skull also informs the grinning Norman, “As does Hydra, or whatever is left of it, Mr. Osborn.”

A snicker escapes Osborn’s mouth. “Please, not that old name. I’d like a new one, one I’ve been thinking of for many years now in my spare time…” He reaches into one of his jacket’s pockets and procures a green mask. With pointy ears, a large chin, and a freakish nose, it looks almost demonic. Norman slides the mask over his head, and looks at his associates with yellow eyes. “Call me the Green Goblin, will ya? That goes for all of you too!” He points at the people down below as they cheer him on further. “Let our conquest commence!”

As the Cabal returns indoors to MODOK’s throne room, the Goblin explains to them, “First thing’s first, we need to take care of these New Avengers…”

Hela chuckles with a proud smile on her face. “My armies will do just that, Goblin. That, and they are holding a prisoner captive.”

The Goblin remembers with a finger pointed up, “Ah, Mr. Slattery. Free him too. I like him. He’s funny.”


	10. Ride of the Slatteries

_ New Avengers HQ _

_ May 3rd, 2024, 09:27 _

Trevor Slattery sits in his cell, all by his lonesome. “Alright, can someone fix the cable in here? All I’ve got is the boring news.” All he sees is about how the dead have risen and are attacking New York City.  _ How the Witching Hour is upon mankind and the superhuman community is wholly mystified. Wong claims it to be an attack from the forces of evil. Frank Castle claims it to be his kind of morning exercise. All across the globe is pandemonium. _

“Bollocks!”, Trevor yells at his remote. He tries switching the channel, hitting the remote against his hand.

He attempts to change the channel once more, and upon clicking a button on the remote, his cell door opens. Standing in the doorway is Hela. “Don’t worry, Trevor. I am here now.”

He squinted at the horned goddess, asking her, “Who are you?”

She sighs, annoyed at having that question constantly levied at her.  _ Do these Midgardian mortals not know of me either??? _ “I’m Hela.” Souls from places known and unknown all across the galaxy rampage through the base for the sole purpose of ruining it. “And these are my friends.”

Trevor steps out, recollecting several times he’d seen her face in the past. Usually, it’d be at the end of his more intense drug binges - when the world would go dark and the end was at its nearest - until he would eventually be resuscitated by emergency workers. “We met before? Maybe at an extravagant costume party or two?”

“You’ve had your brushes with me in the past. But now, I’m going to reward you for your role in helping me get out of the Soul Stone.”

He remembers his mission:  _ Grab the Gauntlet plans, find the Stone, free her and her armies _ . “Ah, that was you! An honor to meet you, lady.” He extends a hand to shake hers.

She looks down at it in disappointment. “So I’ve heard. Here, your ring.”

She hands him a shiny red ring, one he was gifted specifically for the espionage mission a week prior. “My good luck charm. Thank you very much.” He fastens it onto his left index finger and smiles at her.

“Don’t mention it. Really. Now, let’s get out of here.” She marches down the hall with Trevor right behind her. He sees the destruction these evil Souls are wreaking, and it seems like fun. Yet it seems scary too. Is this what the dead want?

One of the Souls makes it clear what she wants: “Trevor! Dear, don’t listen to her lies!”

He looks at the source of the sound, asking, “Eh?” But he stops and shakes once he sees who is talking to him.

Standing in the chaos is his mother. The woman who wanted him to pursue his dreams of acting on the stage, who raised him to be good, who has travelled from the Soulworld to see her son. “Mama?”

Hela sneers at the ghost, telling Trevor, “Don’t mind her. She’s on the enemy team after all.”

“Trevor, my boy, it’s been so long.” Trevor’s mother holds her son in a hug, which he reciprocates. “You can’t be doing this, this woman’s the Goddess of Death. She’s evil.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, Mom. But she’s giving me a chance to rule the world. It’s like we’d always wanted.”

Trevor’s mother sighs and informs her son, “No, I never wanted you to do that. I want you to be good and happy, Trevor. She doesn’t want any of that, she wants to destroy the world. She is worse than even the other bad guys…”

Suddenly, her ghostly form freezes as she is pulled into a wall, away from Trevor so that she can’t try and dissuade him from the mission. Hela grins, “That’s enough out of you. Time to take a turn in the time-out corner.” She looks at Trevor and plants a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “Look, we have to get out of here and find the New Avengers. They’re a deterrent too, like your mother, and they must be taken out mercilessly. And with that ring of yours, we could do just tha-”

A blade of flames runs through Hela’s chest. She grits her teeth, feeling the fire burn through her, and sees that Trevor has used his ring to stab her with it. Grimacing at Slattery, she growls, “Ungrateful bastard”, and kicks him aside.

As she lurches away to recover, Blackheart rises from the floor to protect her and fight Slattery. He makes quick work of two Souls hovering around him before stabbing through Blackheart.

With the demon at least temporarily incapacitated, Trevor runs out of the area in search of a phone.

* * *

_ Times Square _

_ May 3rd, 2024, 09:40 _

The New Avengers - or rather, half of them - are desperately battling through scores of the undead, with reinforcements from all corners of the five boroughs aiding the heroes. Leading the charge are Silver and her Royal Guard, extremely effective in their warpath on mowing down the zombies and Souls.

Meanwhile, the other half of the team are sleeping in the Quinjet, ready to swap out with their fighting counterparts in due time. Half-awake, Maria Hill keeps an eye on her teammates as she tries not to fall asleep herself. Suddenly, a wakeup call on her phone. It’s HQ.

She rolls her eyes and remarks to herself, “Oh my god, it’s Slattery.” She answers the phone and asks with a scowl, “What do you want?”

Trevor speaks frantically, with crashing all around him, “You need to get back here now! Hela is here, and she’s ripping everything apart! She’s with Blackhead!”

Maria raises an eyebrow and asks, “Who?”

“Dark-Tentacle-Guy!”

A part of her believes him, but she certainly doesn’t trust Trevor. “This is definitely a trap. We’ll come for you, just give us-”

“I’m being dead serious here! Hurry!” The call cuts out, and Maria groans as she steps to her feet and walks out of the Quinjet, shooting at several zombies and evil Souls. “Dammit…”

She walks over to Gamora and Ghost Rider, telling them, “Hela and… ‘Blackhead’ are at the base, I’m going there now, but I’ll need backup.”

Knowing who ‘Blackhead’ is, Robbie looks at her from his car’s driver seat and opens the front passenger door. “Get in. Let’s ride.” She enters the car and the two drive upstate, burning through the empty streets of the city at ludicrous speeds.

* * *

_ New Avengers HQ _

_ May 3rd, 2024, 09:57 _

With Trevor entangled in a mess of black tendrils, Blackheart looks into his soul with his red eyes and says, “Now, Trevor, you die.”

He looks over at Hela, still recovering from the stab, and asks her, “Can I at least say my final words?”

Both villains harshly answer, “NO.”

Suddenly, the Hell Charger plows through a wall, slamming into Blackheart and Hela.

As Maria and Robbie step out of the car, Blackheart looks to Hela and urges her, “Flee, my lord!” In a flash of green light, she vanishes.

As Blackheart charges at the heroes, Trevor strikes his shoulder with his flame-ring-sword, visibly wounding him. In tandem, Robbie entraps Blackheart with his chain and burns him in it.

Together, the two scorch the demon, all while Maria aims her gun at him. Just to join in, she starts shooting at Blackheart. Slowly, he collapses to the floor a smoking heap.

Looking around, Trevor asks, “Is he dead?”

Robbie glares at the many Souls spectating the scene, prompting them to run away. “Seems lik-”

“It matters not, mortals.” Blackheart begins to rise to his feet, his grievous wounds healing in seconds. “We have already won. What happens this day will haunt the known realms for generations.”

“As you’re about to find out.” Once more, Robbie wraps up Blackheart in his fiery chains. 

Blackheart cackles aloud. “What can you possibly do to hurt me?”

“Not me. Someone else.” With an open palm, he opens a sparkling portal to another dimension beneath Blackheart’s feet. As the demon starts to fall in, Robbie warns with a smirk on his face, “Enjoy your stay, asshole.” The chains unravel and Blackheart descends into the portal.

As it rapidly closes, an impressed Maria asks Robbie, “Where did you send him?”

* * *

The skies are starry but empty as magic crackles with unholy black energy. Fitting for the one and only…

_ Dark Dimension _

_ May 3rd, 2024, 10:06 _

As Blackheart looks around and realizes his situation, the fiery head of the dread Dormammu - Undisputed Ruler of the Dark Dimension - manifests and glares at the shadowy demon with maliciously cosmic eyes.

“ **You DARE trespass into my realm, son of Mephisto For tha** **t? you will BURN!** ”

Dormammu raises his fist and prepares to slam it down onto Blackheart. Before so, all he can scream is, “DAMN YOU, REYEEEEEES!”

* * *

Robbie dusts off his hands proudly. “That oughta take care of him. Now for you, Trevor.” Robbie marches up to Trevor and grabs him by the throat.

Panicking, Trevor begs, “Please don’t. I-I-I’m sorry. I was wrong to work with them!”

Robbie raises Slattery up, his feet dangling in the air. “Hindsight’s 20/20, pal. But I can see your future. Hope you like brimstone too.” Robbie’s skin melts away, allowing the Rider to take over as it snarls at Trevor.

Before any blood can be shed, Trevor’s mother calls out, “Wait!” The three look at her and she explains, “Spare my child, please. Give him this second chance. He’s on your side.”

“It’s true, Robbie. Look around us.” They weren’t paying attention earlier, but now that there isn’t any fighting going on, Maria and Robbie can see at least three dozen defeated Souls laying about the facility.

Maria looks at Trevor and asks, “How’d you do all this?”

Trevor raises his left hand and shows her his fingers. “My special Makluan Ring. ‘Incandescence’. Osborn gave it to me last week, said it’d be useful if I ran into trouble. But I don’t want to work with them anymore. My mother said that Hela alone is a big enough threat. One who wants to destroy the planet.”

Robbie’s skin returns to his skeletal face. With a growl, he asks Trevor, “Why should we believe you? How do I know you won’t turn that shit on us first chance you get?”

Maria smirks at the good work he’s done. “Because if he wanted to, he would’ve done so already.” She motions for Robbie to put him down and he does so, dropping him on his butt.

Slowly, Maria walks over and offers him a hand. “Trevor, I’m going to give you a chance to help us. Be one of the New Avengers. But you have to work with us. Deal?”

He looks around and sees Robbie’s anger on her face, his mother’s hope in her posture, and Maria’s trust in her polite gesture. With a smile on his bearded face, Trevor answers, “Yeah, I can do that.” He takes her hand and she helps him stand.

His mother smiles before fading off elsewhere.

A buzz sounds off on Maria’s phone. She answers a call from Silver, who tells her, “The Souls are dispersing. We’ve won the battle, but the war still awaits.”

“Then, it would be best we get some rest.”

“We cannot do that, Hill. The Souls are headed East.”

* * *

_ Symkaria _

_ May 3rd, 2024, 15:21 _

Three rebels run from a firefight they’ve clearly lost, hoping to escape the hunter.

With a web gripped to one of their backs, a rebel flies into the air. He screams for help, but they fall silent.

Another one is pulled into an alleyway by another web mere seconds later. He barely knew what hit him.

The last guy’s all alone. Makes it easy for the hunter to jump down on him and deliver a swift punch to his jaw.

Proudly standing over his prey, the elusive Night Monkey reports to the King of Symkaria, “Main Street is secure, your highness. Had to deal with several rebels, but they’re no problem anymore.”

“Good work, Night Monkey… You’re nee-  _ zzzzz _ \- Aniana is under heav-  _ zzzzz _ \- This isn’t the rebels! It’s-  _ zzzzzzzz _ ”

Night Monkey puts the radio away, confused at the situation. He swings up to the rooftops, where he sees an army of Souls clouding the sky. He remarks in utter shock and amazement, “Ó můj bože…”


	11. The Symkaria-Xandar Connection

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Sorry for the disappearance, I had to tend to college finals. I apologize for the inconvenience. Anyways, working on this story should be easier now. Here we go!

Maria dreams of odd little things, realities like hers but not and memories that are familiar and unknown alike. Many dreams tend to be such things. And yet, through much of it, she keeps on seeing her girlfriend Natasha in the fog. She feels her closeness and her warmth, and she just wants her back.

She feels herself coming back to consciousness, waking to the sight of her teammates napping in the Quinjet with her… Save for the unphased trio of Robbie, Gamora and Sablinova. With watchful eyes, they resist sleep.

Gamora turns to Maria and hovers over to her. With a yawn, Hill asks, “How are we on our journey to Symkaria?”

Robbie answers, “About half an hour away from Symkaria. From there, we’ll ”

“Good.” Then, she realizes that the ship isn’t in motion. She looks out the front window and sees a plane depot. “Wait, why did we stop?”

Gamora explains, “We were running low on fuel, so we took a pit stop in Switzerland for gas.”

_Switzerland_

_May 3rd, 2024, 17:27_

As Maria sighs, Gamora looks around and rubs at her temple. “Commander Hill, I’m getting psychic feedback from Xandar.”

“What do you mean?”, Maria asks with a raised eyebrow.

“Someone…” She realizes who it is and, with a smile, tells Maria, “It’s Natasha. We’re psychically linked, possibly because of how we were both sacrificed for the Stone.”

Maria rises to her feet. “Can I talk to her?”

“I’ll do you one better. I can project you to Xandar, and you can talk to her yourself.”

She takes a few seconds to consider. Not many seconds before she enthusiastically tells her, “I’d like that.”

“Then here goes nothing.” Gamora opens her palm and grabs Maria’s forehead.

Suddenly, she’s flying. Maria looks at her body as it goes limp. Gamora gently sets her in the pilot seat before looking up at Maria’s soul and giving her a supportive nod.

Light as a feather, Maria takes flights. Past stars, spaceships, suns and planets, she soars through the black depths of outer space. She heads for Xandar, as a part of her knows. A part of her guided by Natasha.

* * *

_Xandar_

_May 3rd, 2024, 15:27_

The skies are sunny and the air is humid outside. People of all origins roam the area around the rebuilt Nova Corps Headquarters, barely paying any mind to the roaming Souls near them. They seem much more peaceful here than on Earth.

Disregarding this, Maria moves inside, searching for her girlfriend. She can feel her sitting somewhere in this gargantuan building.

Finally, flying past a duo of Nova Corpsmen, she finds her holding cell.

There she is, sitting alone and contained by an energy field. “Natasha…” Maria steps forward and catches her eye.

Natasha smirks at her and asks, “What are you doing here?”

Scratching at the back of her neck, Maria explains, “Gamora’s on Earth, she sent me up here.”

Natasha sees that Maria, in her rather nervous state, is slowly phasing through the floor. “Astral projection is pretty weird, isn’t it?”

Hill lifts herself up, now standing in mid-air. “Strange and Banner make it sound so casual.” She promptly takes a seat - still in the air - and laughs a bit. “I guess I should be asking you the same thing anyways. About why you’re here.”

“I was on Earth, but then Hela sorta flicked me across the galaxy.” Natasha crosses her arms, fuming internally at the Goddess of Death. “I made my way here, I scared the local authorities - the Nova Corps - and I turned myself in. But don’t worry, we’ve got friends who can get me to Earth… And speaking of…”

Footsteps approach from outside, prompting Maria to try hiding in a corner. Natasha smirks at her, knowing that no one would even catch a glimpse of her.

In steps the legendary outlaw, Star-Lord, and his team, the ~~Asgardians~~ Guardians of the Galaxy.

Before he can say a word, Thor pushes past him with a big grin on his face. “Natasha!”

“Hey, buddy.” She steps out of her cell, through the energy field to hold Thor in a big hug. Noticing that he’s lost some weight and shaved, she happily comments, “You’re looking good. I’m proud of you.”

“I’ve been getting back into a routine. I’ve got these guys to thank for it.” He points the Stormbreaker in his teammates’ direction, and Star-Lord nods his head in approval. _Hey, it wasn’t difficult, especially for a guy like me_ , Natasha can hear in Quill’s mind. She highly doubts it.

“It’s a pleasure seeing you, Romanoff.” Stepping forward to say so with a smile is Nebula.

“Thank you, Nebula.” Natasha shakes her hand and continues, “It’s good seeing you too. I’ve got some good news for you regarding your sister.” Seeing that the 2014-Gamora is accompanying the team, she corrects herself: “Other sister. From this timeline.”

“Where is she?”

“Earth, if what I’ve been told is accurate.” Nick Fury walks in and, upon seeing Natasha, hugs her. With compassion coming through his serious tone, he tells her, “It’s so good to see you again.”

“I can say the same about you, Fury.”

Rocket chimes in and tells the group, “We’ve got to hurry you back to Earth, I’m sure.”

“Definitely.” Natasha turns to face her cell, as if to look for something she left behind, and tells the group, “You guys go ahead, I’ll be out in a bit.”

As the Guardians and Fury walk out of the room, Maria steps out into the open. She wraps her arms around Natasha and hugs her tight. “I can’t wait to have you back.”

“Same here.” Natasha returns the hug, happy to have finally felt her.

As Maria steps back and prepares to quickly return to Earth, Natasha grabs her shoulder and pulls her close. In that moment, their lips connect in a soothing kiss and a pair of smiles. “See you in a minute.” Natasha gently taps Maria’s forehead and her path home is set.

* * *

_Switzerland_

_May 3rd, 2024, 17:32_

Maria reawakens to the sounds of footsteps and rustling. Her teammates have emerged from their slumber and Silver is informing everyone, “Ship’s filled up!” The team gets their game faces on and Hill is at the forefront.

She rubs her eyes and plants a tender finger on her lips, remembering that kiss. “Then let’s get this show on the road.” She revs up the engines of the Quinjet and the ship takes flight.

Gamora walks to Hill’s side and asks her, “You got what you were looking for?”

“Definitely.” Looking out to the clear skies and spotting the smoke over Symkaria, Maria prepares for the future.


	12. Along Came A Night Monkey

_ Symkaria _

_ May 3rd, 2024, 18:01 _

The Masters of Evil have reached Symkaria in search of an artifact in the capital, Aniana. And for the past Leading the charge on this mission are the Inhuman Mordis, the assassin Benjamin “Bullseye” Poindexter and the “Baron” Helmut Zemo.

“I haven’t had this much fun since Wilson Fisk’s wedding!”, Bullseye jovially remarks as he pulls an iron bar from a piece of rubble and aims for a soldier running away.

As he fires the projectile through the soldier and his two armed companions, Mordis too fires at an approaching tank with his energy beams, blowing it up in a ball of fire. “You’re telling me!”

Zemo marches past the chaos, focused on his mission. “Stay on track, gentlemen. We’ve got a mission on our hands.” He pulls out a photograph from his long coat, reviewing the image of a small electrical console once more. “We get the Multiversal Amplifier, the Stone’s back in play. And then, it’s time for our insurrection.”

“Which part of the country are you getting, Zemo?”, Mordis asks rather unamusedly. “I heard Ultron wants… what is it, the Northeast?”

Bullseye adds with a wide grin, “And MODOK’s talking about taking Vegas with his AIM fellas!” He cackles in amusement at the idea.

Zemo bluntly tells the two, “I don’t care much for the conquest of land. Though Ohio seems nice these days.”

A voice from above quips, “Maybe you can try for the Raft instead?”, as a web attaches to Zemo’ photograph before plucking it away into the hands of the shadowy Night Monkey. Suddenly, he swoops down and punches Mordis in the gut. “How about Berlin? Was Berlin nice?”

Bullseye pulls out a few playing cards and flicks them at the superhero while proudly exclaiming, “Spider-Man! Oh, I’ve always wanted to meet ya, kid! Now, I get to kill ya!”

As he throws the cards at him, Night Monkey explains to him in frustration, “I am not Spider-Man!” Although he dodges the cards, his senses warn him of danger behind him. Before he can even realize it, the cards explode, sending Night Monkey crashing to the floor.

The debris settles and the villains approach the downed hero. Keeping him down under his heel, Bullseye remarks, “And I’m not the greatest shot in New York.” He pulls out a throwing knife, shining under the sunlight. “Give my regards to Beck when you see him.”

As he raises his arm, War Machine slams right into him to deliver a fist to his face. At the same time, Maria descends upon Mordis from a rope. Latching her legs around his neck, she jabs a taser stick into his chin, lighting his face up like a Christmas tree. Quickly, she kicks him away and turns to Zemo. She glares at him before landing a roundhouse kick into his ribs.

Suddenly, the Red Skull flutters down from the sky with several sinister Souls in tow. They grab the villains and fly away.

Maria and Soren rush to the Night Monkey’s aid and help him up to his feet. “Parker? Are you okay?”, Hill asks.

Even with a mask on, he is visibly confused. “I, uh- I am the Night Monkey!”

Soren laughs, serving only to further confuse Night Monkey. “Glad to see you’re still dedicated to your identity, kid.”

“Of course I am”, he says boldly. “Who are you?”

Soren rolls her eyes and quickly shapeshifts from her Skrull form to that of “Maria Hill. Commanders of SHIELD.” She looks over to the real Maria, who is only slightly impressed.

“Is that… supposed to mean something to me?” The Night Monkey looks at the other heroes, hoping they’ll fill him in on the situation.

Maria turns on her phone to fact check, and Soren continues to explain to Night Monkey, “You’re Spider-Man, we met a few months ago. Of course, I was wearing my SHIELD disguise and so were you.”

“He’s not Spider-Man. Parker’s still in Manhattan. See?” Maria shows the group her phone. On it is live news footage of the real Spider-Man zipping around Manhattan while skillfully fighting off several lesser Masters of Evil - including the resurrected duo of Obadiah Stane and Darren Cross, as well as a small legion of Dark Elves accompanying them.

As impressed as the Night Monkey is, he is still very, very confused. “Who is Parker?”

“It’s not important”, answers Silver as she walks up to him. In spite of her icy demeanor, the team can see a smirk forming on her face in the Night Monkey’s presence. “Greetings, Saudek.”

The Night Monkey bows to her, “Greetings, Princess Sablinova. Good work in America. And congratulations on the Avengers membership.”

She pats him on the shoulder and tells him, “I’m glad to see that you’re safe, Petr.” She looks around at the damage and asks, “How are my parents doing?”

“They called in about these ghosts, but the transmission was cut off. I’m afraid Aniana is under assault… I am dearly sorry.”

As the Night Monkey looks away, ashamed of his perceived failure, Silver gently holds his chin up and looks him in the eyes. “No need for apologies just yet. Let’s hurry while we can.” The two charge towards the capitol, confusing many of the other Avengers regarding their relationship.

Maria looks to her teammates with a serious face. “You heard the lady.” And so, they follow.

* * *

_ Aniana _

_ May 3rd, 2024, 18:09 _

The Red Skull looks out one of the throne room’s windows at the works of his minions. As it was in World War II, and as it was in modern times, Symkaria is under siege and at war. “This place. It brings back fond memories.”

He remembers how Symkaria aided in the efforts against the Nazis in World War II, and how the then-youthful Prince Sablinov socked him across the cheek with Captain America. It angers him, but that is neither here nor there. Now, he waits.

King Sablinov, restrained by several AIM beekeepers, coldly asks the Skull, “What are you hoping to find, Schmidt? Your blood money? Your unimpressive Hydra tech?”

The Skull turns to King Sablinov and informs him, “The Vault of Artifacts. We’re certain you have something I… the Benefactor needs.”

“I’ll tell you where it is.”, King Sablinov says. “You go down the left hallway, make a right through the stairwells, and then keep moving forward, right up your ASS!” As he laughs, one of the beekeepers kicks him in the gut.

Slowly, the Skull hovers over in quiet disdain for Sablinov’s rebellion. “You think this is a joke, King Sablinov.”

“You and your kind always are. ‘Supervillains’.” The King laughs again in the Skull’s face, much to his ire. “You’re about as big a threat to Symkaria now as you were in the Forties!”

Something in the Skull snaps. In spite of his ghastly seventy-year obligations to cosmic affairs, a part of him swiftly remembers what it meant to be primally evil. He raises one of his arms and watches it slowly morph into a crimson blade. “If you’re having problems remembering Hydra’s reign, then let me assist you.”

As the Skull aims the weapon at the King, a crash erupts and the doors to the throne room crumble. Standing in the doorway is the New Avengers, ready for battle. Quickly, Ant-Man and the Wasp dispatch the beekeepers in the room while the Gladiator, War Machine, Korg and Miek rush the Red Skull. With the villains busy, Silver approaches her father and helps him to his feet. “Father, are you alright?”

King Sablinov dusts himself off and places a comforting hand on his daughter’s shoulder. “I’m fine, Silver. Teach these punks a lesson.”

“With pleasure.” Silver pulls out her pistols and starts blasting at the beekeepers.

The Night Monkey rushes along, but a hand on his shoulder plants him by the King’s side. “Keep my daughter safe, boy.”

The Night Monkey nods his head and reassuringly tells “Of course, Your Highness!”

As the Skull tosses his opponents aside, Night Monkey shoots web balls at his face. They bounce off his shiny red dome and he jokes from the ceiling, “Hey, isn’t there a Bee Guy on your team, Skull? With these AIM jokers, that just doesn’t work!”

With a swoop and a kick, he knocks the Skull into a punch from Maria Hill. “If you’re this easy to knock around, maybe give that floating-chair guy a HEAD’S UP!”

He gets on the floor and propels his feet into the Skull’s face. As he is disorientated, both War Machine and Silver shoot at him and send the Skull stumbling backwards. Once he catches himself, he sees the Night Monkey’s fist flying towards his face. “Jeez, you’re gonna-”

The Skull grabs Night Monkey’s fist with one hand and his throat with another, all the while glaring at him with darkened eyes. “Enough of your jokes, child!” As he starts absorbing his Soul energy through his throat, a crash from above causes debris to crush the Skull.

Before it does so, Silver pulls Night Monkey away and holds him in her arms. “Are you okay?”, she asks him.

A bit dazed, he answers, “Of course!” The two smile at each other before the Skull emerges from the debris.

Slowly, he lurches out of the damage to deliver a wicked look at the New Avengers.

Suddenly, a purple cloak emerges from the wreckage too. The cloaked figure grabs the Skull by his hood and slams him into the ground behind her. She then steps on the Skull’s chest, sending him flying down a floor.

Then, she speaks: “I hope the party isn’t over.” She looks at Maria and smiles at her. “I just got in.”

_It’s Natasha_ , Maria thinks to herself. _She’s finally back. And she's good enough to kiss again._


	13. Return of the Widow

The enraged Red Skull growls at the presence of the Black Widow. “Remember me?”

“Vaguely.” He remembered Gamora and her sacrifice. Seeing Natasha wearing a cloak similar to hers, and knowing that she came from the Soul Stone just as Gamora had tells him what he needs to know. They have met, though it wasn’t him. It was another him, another time and another Stone.

Maria runs over to Natasha and grips her in a hug from behind. With an unusually wide grin on her face, she says, “Hey, Nat.”

“Hey, Maria.” She keeps her sights fixed on the Red Skull, not wanting him to get away. Standing close to Maria, she asks rather smugly, “Wanna deal with this guy real quick and then head downstairs?”

“Uh, let’s just do this.” Maria turns to some of the other Avengers and tells them, “Scott, Hope, you two go with the Skrulls downstairs to the Vault! There are some bad guys to deal with there.”

The Red Skull cackles as the more powerful heroes run to deal with the other threats at hand. “You two think you can defeat me? Two rather… unremarkable humans?”

Natasha remarks, “I think we can, considering you got your ass handed to you by the  _ Tesseract _ . Let’s take him down, Hill.” She grabs Maria’s hands and gives her a trusting smirk.

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” In the blink of an eye, both their astral spirits ascend from their bodies, which drop to the floor harmlessly.

“Ah, you think that will help you?” As the Skull takes a step towards the unconscious bodies, Gamora and the Ghost Rider stand before them to guard them. Robbie quickly entangles the Skull in a fiery web of chains, though he isn’t greatly phased by it.

As he attempts to pull himself out of the restraints, Natasha grabs his temple with her hands, sending orange energy rippling through his body. Just as she does so, Maria flies into his back and elbows his nose once the upper half of her body is sticking out of his chest.

The two contain the Skull in a whirlwind of astral energy, delivering punches and kicks his way. Simultaneously, Robbie begins firing flames from his mouth to scorch the Skull and Gamora focuses orange energy in his direction to weaken the Skull’s power too.

Seconds later, Natasha pulls Maria out of the whirlwind to join Gamora in the firing of astral energy. The Skull takes quick notice that the spiritual Avengers aren’t killing him. They’re exiling him.

As he begins to lose his power and connection to the planet, Maria sits back and returns to her body.

Before he vanishes, the Skull tells his adversaries, “This isn’t the end, Avengers.”

“You’re right”, Maria says as she pulls out her pistol from her hip-holster and takes aim at the ghoul. “We’re only getting started.” She shoots him in the face, sending him reeling back in mortal pain.

With this pain, he knows that his part in the Masters of Evil’s conquest is at its end. He sees two worlds: Earth and Vormir. And he knows Earth is lost to him. Just as he had in the 1940s, he is banished to Vormir, never to return.

Without a Stone to guard, he has no purpose there. He is merely a prisoner alone with his failures.

Natasha returns to her body a few seconds later, giving Gamora a knowing look to confirm their victory over the Red Skull.

Maria walks over to her girlfriend and smiles at her. It’s not often she lets one of those shine on her face, but she does so for Nat. “What’s next?”

“Next is…” Mordis comes crashing through the floor into the pile of rubble that crashed down on the Red Skull a few minutes earlier. “That.” Quickly, the two heroines rush to the hole to see that Zemo and Bullseye have entered the Vault of Artifacts, and that they are also fighting Ant-Man and the Wasp. Badly.

As Hope jumps on Zemo and delivers a punch to his jaw, he yells to his compatriot, “Find the Amplifier, you fool!”

As Bullseye runs down aisles of metal shelves under dim lighting and ancient dust, a green shimmer attracts his attention. Standing in its hue is Hela, holding a small metal battery - the Multiversal Amplifier - in one hand and her Gauntlet in the other. She gives one glance to Bullseye before grabbing his shoulder and teleporting with him to Zemo’s location.

The Avengers convene on Zemo, ready for battle. As he backs into a corner, outnumbered fifteen-to-one, Hela appears before him and grabs his hand before vanishing once more. She does the same with Mordis before the heroes can even realize that Zemo is gone.

As she reappears, alone, on top of the Symkarian Royal Palace, she adjusts the Amplifier over the Stone and plants the Gauntlet onto her fist. Blue electricity crackles from the device into her, as if it wants to escape her hold. But Hela won’t let this multiversal magic have power over her. Not while her conquest is within reach.

“I have the power”, she whispers wickedly to herself as she feels countless Souls surge through her body. “I HAVE THE POW-”

Gunfire rains from the heavens. The Guardians of the Galaxy shoot at her mercilessly from their Benatar spaceship. It was about time they showed the villains of Earth what they could do.

Although she is pelted by alien ammunition, she isn’t seriously wounded. But she is enraged as she unleashes a thousand Souls on the Guardians’ vessel. While they quickly take on evasive maneuvers, Hela takes her chance to teleport away and escape.

The Souls attempt to rip and tear at the Benatar with their ghastly claws. Of course, all guns are firing away, but the team can see that things are bleak. Rocket grabs a radio and calls out to any support nearby: “Mayday! Mayday! We need cover fire!”

Lo and behold, help arrives in the form of the cloaked Gamora. She flies through the skies as a purple missile, melting through the attacking demons with her fists. “Oh hell yeah!”, Rocket yells with a fist pounding in the air.

Quickly, she peeks her head into the ship to see her sisters - Nebula and her 2014 counterpart - and says with a smirk, “Need a hand, sisters?” Of course they do, and Gamora returns to the skies to banish more demonic Souls.

Soon enough, after a few more minutes of clearing house, the Souls retreat once more to places unknown. Hela isn’t taking any chances now.

With the invading forces dealt with, Symkaria is deemed safe as the Royal Family and their army regains control of the country.

For now, at least, all's right with the heroic teams of two worlds.


	14. The Battle For Washington DC Part I: Isle In The Sky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a lot longer to write than I figured. I am very, very sorry about the wait. But on the bright side, I've got a good plan for how to continue the story and a good jump in my creative process ("Legion" is an amazing Marvel show and I highly recommend it) (The "Avengers" Game Beta was also pretty fun and helped too).
> 
> Also, this is now part 1 of a series. Now for me to just keep this ball rolling and the boat afloat.

_Washington DC_

_May 4th, 2024, 12:00_

Footsteps stomp on the path to the Oval Office. Awaiting the arrival of the messenger is President Thomas Kimball, sitting at his desk with several concerned Military officials at his side. “Status Report?”, he asks.

The messenger displays several folders full of information, and he opens them. Within are photographs and news articles telling of the attack on Symkaria by the Masters of Evil: "The Souls have retreated from Symkaria to somewhere in South America. It appears they were successfully driven away by the Avengers. As for those Guardsmen-"

"Guardians, son." Kimball lets out a soft chuckle as he sees the messenger’s face change to understand his error.

"My apologies, sir. The Guardians have taken to the stars once more. Colonel Fury informed me over holo-communication that Earth isn't the only planet dealing with these supernatural occurrences, and he is overseeing the situation with SWORD."

The President holds his hands together, intrigued more with each further development. "What is the situation on the Souls from Symkaria, and these Masters of Evil? You mentioned South America."

"Our intel told us that they are based on the mysterious AIM Island somewhere on the Caribbean Sea. The United Nations have had their sights set on the area for the past few months, but it appears to have vanished as of late last night."

"Any sign of where it could be?"

"No idea, sir."

"Then, we'd best be-" Darkness falls over the Capitol, as if a storm had just blown into town. "What's going on out there? The forecast didn't call for rain."

Soldiers, clad in black, barge into the Oval Office and report, “Mister President! We’re under attack by superhuman forces. We need to get you to the bunker.”

“What about Sam?”, the President asks of his husband; reporter and childhood friend of his.

The soldier tells him confidently, “He’s still safe and secured in Los Angeles, sir.” Quickly, he helps President Kimball out of his chair, as darkness continues to manifest over Washington DC.

Suddenly, as if in the blink of an eye, standing in their way are several leaders of the Masters of Evil: Osborn, Hela, Ultron and Zemo. Norman slowly steps forward to President Kimball’s desk. “Good afternoon, Tom.”

The President looks up and down at him, trying to see if he recognizes him, and asks in sheer bewilderment, “What are you supposed to be?”

“I’m the Green Goblin, Tommy.” A sinister grin appears on Norman’s masked face. But it turns into a sudden scowl as he corrects himself: “No. Make that ‘President Goblin’. From here on out, I’ll be in charge of things. I’ll run-”

Hela clears her throat and asks, “You mean ‘we’, correct?”

Osborn nods his head quickly, almost embarrassed. “We… will be in charge of things. Together. Isn’t that right? We’ll run the country the way we want. It’s a brave new world, Tom.”

Suddenly the President realizes that he knows that voice coming from the Goblin’s mouth. “Osborn, you slime!”, he yells in upset.

“There’s no Osborn up here. Any insistence of such will be made a federal crime punishable by death. To which Miss Hela here will be more than happy to oblige.”

President Kimball rolls his eyes and asks, “What do you monsters want?”

The Goblin slams his palms on the President’s desk and answers, “The country of course. All of it. Ultron wants New York. MODOK here wants Vegas for whatever reason. The remnants of Hydra are plotting to take the Bible Belt, and both PRIDE and the Hand are vying for the Pacific Northwest. Guess who gets the White House?”

“You won’t get away with any of this. The Avengers will stop you.”

The Goblin circles around the desk before placing a hand on the President’s shoulder. He spins him around and shows him the view outside; the cause of the great darkness. “Look up there, Tom, and run that crazy idea by me again.”

In the sky, propelled by rocket engines, AIM Island rests over the majority of Washington DC. “Good God.” is the only thing the President can say.

“Besides, what Avengers should we worry about? Spider-Boy? Those Runaways in LA? Oh, don’t tell me you’re betting on the ‘NEW’ Avengers to bust in and save the day!” He sets his sights on Hela, as everyone else does, while panic begins to settle on her face. “You alright over there?”

A spectre of lightning stalks her, silently and unseen to everyone else. She aims the Gauntlet at him and shouts, “Stay back!”, shaking as she does.

Osborn looks into her eyes and waves a hand over them. “Careful where you point that thing!”

The spectre sees the Goblin and speaks amongst himself and Hela. “Osborn… I remember.” Hela raises the Gauntlet, much to the surprise of everyone in the Office. “You did this to me! You made me!”

Hela lowers her weapon just as quickly as she raised it, yelling at herself, “Enough of that!” Clearing her throat amidst the awkward silence, she adds, “My apologies, President Goblin.”

“I’d imagine so. Keep a lid on that thing, will ya?” A grin crosses on the Goblin’s face, as if to stifle uneasy laughter.

“Happy to help.” A fist collides with the back of his head, and Maria stands triumphantly behind him as the culprit with Natasha by her side. “You’re under arrest, Osborn!”

The Goblin shakes his head and his fists in impotent anger. “I told you people NOT to call me that!” He swiftly rolls behind cover and pulls out a walkie-talkie. “MODOK! Rally the troops and take flight!”

Outside, MODOK leads several flying villains into the skies over the White House. Maria taps her earpiece as she receives a call from Rhodey: “We’ll take the air, you take Osborn!”

“With pleasure.”

Natasha glares at the Goddess of Death with disdain. “We meet again, Hela.”

“I’d thought I had gotten rid of you.”, she says while sneering at the Widow.

Natasha slowly tilts her head before answering, “Us spiders have a way of getting out of jams.”

Hela draws a blank stare and asks, “What do you mean?”

“It’s a metaph-”

“No, no. Not you.” Hela hears that blue spectre taunting her, ready to escape his confines in the Amplifier. “No, you’re mine to command! You hear me?!” She lowers her hands before grumbling to her Gauntlet, “We’ll see about that.” She swiftly raises the Gauntlet over her head and vanishes in a puff of smoke. Knowing that she has left for the Soul World, the Black Widow makes pursuit by vanishing too.

“Nat?”

The Goblin cackles aloud as the other Masters of Evil head out to combat the other Avengers and the guards on the scene. “Looks like your girlfriend’s flown the coop! Now it’s just you and me.”

Seeing that the President has managed to escape with the guards, Maria cracks her knuckles. “I don’t think I’d want it any other way, Norman.” She lunges at Osborn, while he does the same.


	15. The Battle For Washington DC Part II: Panic Up Above, Fear Down Below

_Washington DC_

_May 4th, 2024, 12:31_

The aroma of rocket fuel lingers in the air, with AIM Agents polluting the skies on their mission to protect Homebase from the attacking Avengers. “Fly, my minions! Fly!”, MODOK shouts as he tails his minions, trading the risk of a midair asthma attack for flying meatshields with laser guns. He’s curious of another meatshield, one more durable and dangerous. “Ultron, what are you waiting for?”

Back on the airborne AIM Island, Ultron sits in still anticipation of his contingency’s success. His eyes glow green, a brief change of its usual red hue: “Data transfer complete.” He answers MODOK’s query as he leaves the Island, telling him, “Nothing. Let’s go kill some heroes.”

Having flown in from Avengers HQ, War Machine leads the charge for the Island, seeking out any weak spots through his helmet. “This thing’s massive. What’s the plan?”

Wasp tells him, “I’d say shrink it, but me and Scott would need a lot more ammo than we’ve got now.”

Scott reassures her, “Hey, that’s not too bad an idea. Remember when we blew up the Pym Labs?”

Having heard of what happened there, Night Monkey bluntly tells him, “Yeah, no. That’d be too much risk.”

“Then perhaps we have to think outside the box.”, says a cold voice from behind, belonging to Dr. Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme. Following him close behind is Wanda Maximoff, though the New Avengers can tell that something is off with her. She looks cold herself, as opposed to the lively look (well, as lively as he can get anyways) on the Doctor’s face.

As the heroes reach the landing area of AIM Island, Scott and Hope fall back to catch up with the two heroes. Scott’s positively beaming, “Hey, how’s it going, you two?” He’s a bit worried for Wanda however, asking her, “You alright, Wanda?”

Wanda shudders, she’s still game to help her friends, and she explains quickly, “Been busy. Help is on the way.”

“You bet it is!”, screams MODOK as his battalion charges the heroes. Wanda and Strange quickly get to work on blasting the AIM Agents out of the sky with their archaic incantations, and the New Avengers are quick to assist with firepower of their own.

As AIM Island approaches, the heroes land and begin firing from the ground. Silver and Night Monkey focus their attacks on MODOK, hoping to ground him before he becomes too much of a nuisance… er, more of a nuisance than he usually is, anyways. At the same time, Talos and Soren fire upon Ultron and the AIM Agents accompanying him, knocking them out of the sky one at a time with their precise SHIELD firearm training.

Still, Ultron is undefeated, even as he endures bullets making their mark.

Fortunately, a blast of cosmic energy is able to knock him out of the sky, sending him crashing onto the runway below. He sees his attacker and growls in rage as he recognizes her: Captain Marvel. And with him distracted, he fails to notice the Black Panther lunging at him to claw at his metal face.

Looking around at the many heroes joining the fray, War Machine admits, “Okay, this team’s getting too big.”

“You can say that again.” Spider-Man swings onto an AIM Agent, sending them crashing onto the runway of AIM Island. After quickly recovering, he looks over to Night Monkey while he’s busy wrangling MODOK and is taken aback; like he’s looking into a mirror. “Digging the threads, buddy!”

Night Monkey smiles behind his mask before responding with a thumbs up and a “Thanks!” before returning to battle with MODOK. Now that he’s low enough, Sable is able to hop onto him and start punching the villain in the face.

“Damn stubby arms!”, he screams impotently, unable to grab her and toss her away. As he tries blasting her with his forehead laser, Wanda manages to block it with her powers, keeping Sable safe.

After managing to push Black Panther away and hovering away from his opponents, Ultron begins monologuing to himself, perhaps as comfort: “Avengers… You cannot stop this. We will bring this Island down over Washington if we have to.”

MODOK turns to him, still being beat down by Sable, and informs him, “Uh… No, we’re not.”

A raspy cackle emanates from Ultron as he mocks, “You think this situation is under your control anymore, Tarleton? Did you ever think it was?”

“It better be!”, MODOK shouts as he bangs his fists on his throne.

Scott, starting to grow tired of all these AIM Agents appearing from everywhere, asks Wanda, “Do you think you can get this place somewhere quieter?”

She answers proudly, “I know a place or two.” Quickly, she raises her hands to the sky and shoots scarlet magic into the air, warping the space above the Island. Strange catches onto her plan and joins in with his own magic, strengthening the spell and finding a destination.

The darkness of space fills the sky over the Island, and a pair of purple eyes catch a glimpse of it amidst the blackness. Wanda speaks to them with a strangely grand sense of unreal awe, “Oh Great Devourer, please accept this meal on behalf of Planet Terra!”

Slowly, a hand reaches for the Island, meaning it is now time to evacuate. Wanda and Strange begin running, thus signaling to all the combatants that it is now time to flee.

War Machine leads the escape of his fellow heroes, though their help is aided by even a few AIM airships offering them passage to safety.

Unfortunately, Ultron does not care whether the Devourer kills him or not, and he begins firing on the fleeing combatants, both AIM and Avenger alike. “We’ve already won, Avengers. There is no purpose in escape!”

Graciously, he’s cut off as his head flies from his body, separated thanks to the slicing swing of Captain America’s mighty shield. “He talks too much.”, Sam remarks as he grabs the shield and continues flying from the Island.

Sam flies over to the flying crimson car known as Lola, which is being driven by Phil Coulson and has both Captain Marvel and Bucky Barnes sitting comfortably in it, despite the madness, waiting for Sam to return. He radios over to the New Avengers and explains, “We’ve brought some company. Now let’s get off this rock before it blows!”

Within a few minutes, everyone is able to escape relatively unscathed. The Great Devourer from Outer Space has taken AIM Island and disappeared with it in his hand, and the two sorcerers were able to close the portal before he could get really busy with eating Earth.

MODOK isn’t spared such safety from injury however, due to his wounds from conflict with Silver Sable, and he lands by the Washington Monument. He may be down but he’s not beaten, especially after he finally rid himself of Sable…

… Or so he thought, as he hears the New Avengers aiming their weapons at the back of his head, Sable included among them.

MODOK sighs before raising his arms, “Yep, I surrender.”

Rhodey calls the other New Avengers - the ones who were fighting on the ground - and tells them, “We’ve detained MODOK and eliminated both Ultron and AIM Island. Once this is all cleared up, we get back to the White House and take Osborn and Hela down.”

* * *

As the remaining AIM Agents who still have fight on them attempt to stealthily land in the city, they’re rudely surprised when they hear gunfire approaching and weapons clattering against enemies. Quickly, they arm themselves and enter the open streets, empty from traffic due to the pandemonium occurring around them.

The source of the gunfire reveals himself as he fires upon the AIM Agents: Trevor Slattery, screaming “I love this job!” with an assault rifle in his hands.

Fortunately, he’s got nonlethal rounds. Unfortunately, the rounds that hit still hurt like hell.

To make matters worse, more Avengers have appeared to aid; Shang Chi leaps down from a rooftop, accompanied by the Black Knight and Cersei of the Eternals. He takes a combative stance and declares with a swift punch to one of the Agents’ jaws, “No need to fear. The Avengers are here!”


	16. The Battle For Washington DC Part III: Return To Soulworld

_ The Soulworld _

_ May 4th, 2024, 12:40 _

Lightning crackles over the empty plains of Soulworld, seeking retribution against Hela as she hides in the shadows. It strikes at the ground with an otherworldly ferocity, hunting the villainess and assisting the Black Widow too.

Her cloak flapping in the wind, Natasha walks through the area while attempting to sense Hela’s presence. “You can hide, but you’ll never escape.”, Natasha taunts. “Look at yourself. You were once the Goddess of Death. Now, you’re nothing more than a coward, running from your schemes and trying to buy time.”

Quietly, daggers form from the dirt, hardening as they find their target: the Avenger.

In the blink of an eye, they strike, piercing through the air.

In the blink of another, blue lightning strikes them, preventing them from hurting Natasha. The electricity surges through the ground, tearing into the plain and launching Hela into the air.

Upon making a harsh landing on her face, she makes a fist with her gloved hand - pulsating with dark magic in conjunction with the Soul Stone - and slams it into the ground, further shattering the earth. Through the cracks, several dozen skeletons armed with scimitars climb out and set their sights on Natasha.

Without skipping a beat, Natasha manifests a staff in the palms of her hands and charges at the skeleton soldiers, bashing them each to pieces with single critical hits.

Hela uses the distraction to recharge the Soul Stone with her dark magics, seeing its orange glow radiate menacingly with her intentions.

As she swats three skeletons’ skulls in one blow, Natasha spots Hela raising her gauntlet in an presumed attempt to spread her power further throughout Soulworld. With the coast clear, she raises her staff and aims to hit the Stone. Before she can throw it however, a spell of blue lightning casts an additional boost to its strength, courtesy of the cerulean spectre in the skies.

Now launched, the supercharged staff flies through the air over the heads of Hela’s skeletal soldiers before making its mark, shattering the Stone in her gauntlet and causing an explosion.

Through shaken vision, Hela looks at the Gauntlet and gasps upon seeing it destroyed along with the Stone. She looks up at Natasha and shouts at her, afraid, “Do you have ANY realization as to what you have DONE?!”

“We just saved the day.”

Hela glares at Nat, not quite understanding her statement: “‘WE’?!”

Natasha raises her staff to the sky, allowing another lightning bolt - one now taking the shape of a man - to strike down and enter it. Hela quivers, knowing that her fate has been sealed once more, as Nat slams the staff into the ground, sending lightning rippling in her direction.

Hela can only scream as the lightning passes into her body and vaporizes her instantaneously. They echo throughout the field before fading into nothingness.

With the threat neutralized, Natasha collapses her staff in her hands and lets out a sigh of relief. The skies clear up and down floats the glowing blue figure, the electricity crackling within him like adrenaline. “Thank you, Maxwell.”, she says to him.

Maxwell looks at her, pleasantly surprised, and asks, “How do you know my name?” He isn’t someone who is commonly thanked, as his work experience at Oscorp taught him.

Natasha crosses her arms and explains with a smile, “I know your soul. You’re not from this world.” Upon seeing the worry on Maxwell’s face, she extends an introductory hand for him to shake: “Welcome.”

Just hearing that, he could start crying - that is if he still had tear ducts. Carefully, he accepts the handshake while also regaining his humanoid shape, clad in a black and gray suit. “Thank you.”

After the handshake concludes, Natasha raises her palm into the air and reforms the Soul Stone within seconds. It then flies away from her reach, though she knows it will be in the safer possession of Odin and T’Chaka. Besides, she has her own priorities: return to Earth and help Maria and the New Avengers.

With her index finger, she traces a glowing doorway back to Washington DC. Looking over at Maxwell, she asks him, “Where are you gonna go?”

“I’ll have to find out for myself. Thank you for asking by the way… I think I’m gonna like it here.” With that said, he takes a step back and tells Nat with a friendly chuckle, “Ladies first.”

Natasha leaps through the doorway and Maxwell hovers out right behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanna put it out there that I somehow predicted Jaime Foxx's Electro in the MCU.


	17. The Battle For Washington DC Part IV: Home Stretch

_Washington DC_

_May 4th, 2024 12:59_

For an elderly man hopped up on super drugs, Norman has proven himself to be a formidable opponent. He’s striking to kill, though Hill being younger has given her a great advantage on dodging his hits. As she manages to grab his arm, he shouts at her, “You can’t stop us, Hill!”

“Can it, Osborn!”, Maria yells as she puts him in a chokehold and spins him around to face the outside world; AIM Island is gone, many of their soldiers have been apprehended, and there are more superheroes than ever in the area hunting them down. “Your army’s been destroyed, just give up!”

Norman squirms in her grip, trying to push himself away. “Never!”, he screams as he bites Hill’s hand, forcing her to let him go.

Before Osborn can try anything else, he is sent flying across the Oval Office by Natasha, having spontaneously reappeared, as she punches him square in the face. Standing by Hill’s side, she informs him, “It looks like you’re outnumbered.”

“And it looks like you two are outmatched!”, Osborn cries as he reaches into his jacket and pulls out an orange thermal grenade. He clicks to activate it and tosses it at the two, shouting “Catch!”

Natasha effortlessly grabs the bomb and holds it within her cloak, containing the explosion without trouble.

Osborn groans, disappointed at how that went, and lunges out of the Oval Office through the window. Maria and Natasha run after him but he reveals his ace-in-the-hole: a silver glider on his feet, puffing black smoke in the air. He shifts demeanors and cackles before turning around to speed off.

“Are you okay?”, Maria asks.

Nat shrugs her shoulders and tells her, “I’m fine. Let’s go!” She wraps an arm around Hill’s stomach and leaps after Osborn.

“How was it dispatching Hela?”

“Easy. I got some help from an alternate universe Max Dillon.”

“Wait, really?”

Natasha nods her head, “I’ll tell you more after we nab Osborn.”

The Goblin cackles as Norman begins to fade away inside. All he can do is laugh, even though it’s clearly hurting him at this point.

A fiery chain wraps around the glider as Ghost Rider shouts, “Get down here!” To make him do so, he hooks his end of the chain to the back of his car and quickly makes a U-turn.

Osborn looks back just in time to see the car speed ahead before he is sent flying off of the glider into the ground below. As he recovers quickly, he comes face-to-faces with Hill’s New Avengers, cracking their knuckles and glaring at him with violent intent.

Hill sees this and declares, “Take him, New Avengers!” And so, they do, overwhelming him immediately.

Ant-Man and the Wasp plant tiny punches to his face as they jump around his body. The Gladiator allows them to get off before he roundhouse kicks the Goblin’s jaw, sending him into another punch by War Machine. As he is sent flying away, he is caught by Korg and is curbstomped by him, Miek, Talos and Soren. Night Monkey takes the chance to web him away so that him and Silver Sable can take their turn to knock him around. As it all seems over for him, Trevor runs in to kick him in the stomach a few times, assisted by Robbie kicking him too.

The crowd disperses and the Goblin lays on the ground defeated, badly bruised and seriously wounded. He curses under his breath, afraid that each would be his last. Fortunately for him, the Oscorp serum running through his veins will ensure his survival.

Hill and Natasha join their teammates in standing over the villain. With a proud look on her face, Maria looks at the New Avengers, “Osborn is down. Good work, Team.” As the heroes cheer, she walks over to the Goblin and lifts him to his feet. “Get up, Norman.”

The villain retorts, most certainly concussed, “There is no Norman, only… his health insurance.” He’s definitely gonna need it.


	18. The Next Step

_New Avengers HQ_

_May 5th, 2024, 19:04_

A toast to victory begins the celebration of the defeat of the Masters of Evil. Hill downs her champagne in a single gulp and laughs with Natasha by her side on a couch in the Living Area. “You never really get moments like these, huh?”

Natasha shrugs her shoulders and answers, “Depends. But what matters is that we cherish them.” She plants a kiss on her girlfriend’s cheek and tells her, “Cheers.”

The two lovers watch the party unfold under Upstate New York’s mellow sunset. The New Avengers drink and chat with their fellow heroes, mostly wondering how they’ve been handling their many solo missions. They speak of new friends and new foes, the wondrous locations they’ve visited, and the ways they’ve all changed as a result of what they have experienced - typically for the better.

Maria particularly takes note of her teammates: Scott and Hope chat with Melvin, offering him a job at PymTech 2.0. Trevor does shots to the cheers of his new friends. Talos and Soren try their hands at doing drunken impressions of Norman Osborn. Korg and Miek eat pizza and laugh at old stories. Night Monkey and Silver Sablinova drink together on a web in a high corner of the room. Rhodey tells his stories of heroism from the Battle for Washington DC. Robbie broods in the corner, proud to have experienced being an Avenger.

And of course, Natasha’s back in her arms. She’s safe, she’s here, she’s still as badass as she ever was, and Maria wouldn’t want it any other way. They hold one another, wanting to never let go. “I’m so happy we’re here. I love you, Nat.”

“I love you too, Maria.”

* * *

_New Avengers HQ_

_May 5th, 2024, 21:43_

The party winds down and the heroes start to crash in the Living Area, sleeping off the alcohol and the adrenaline.

Natasha and Maria giddily run through the Foyer as the dulcet night rests over the world. They’re practically dancing, just happy to be together again.

Suddenly, someone catches their attention as he steps out of an elevator. He’s a man in a maroon suit with a head of gray hair. He waves at them casually and says formally, “Hello, heroes.”

The two lovers stop dancing and Hill asks, “Who are you?”

“I’m with Division 3.”

Natasha nods her head, knowing that name. “We’ve heard of you.”

The man in the maroon suit smiles: “How flattering. Anyways, my constituents have sent me here to present a proposal for you and your team. Mind if I stand here with you two?” He walks over to them and looks out of the Foyer. He sighs, “The East Coast seems pretty well-guarded, huh?”

Hill looks at Natasha, both of them greatly confused as to what Division 3 wants with the New Avengers. “Yeah. That’s what we’re here for.”

The man in the maroon suit shakes his head, almost regretfully. “I’m afraid not. That’s what the _new_ New Avengers are here for; the one that was to be set up once all the big-name heroes got back in the business of working together. Remember, Commander Hill?”

“He’s right.”, Maria grumbles. “There has to be a way we can all still work together.”

Clark grins and tells her, “That’s exactly what I was getting to. Y’see, my constituent’s a big fan of your work; Thomas Kimball, you know, the President of these great United States.” Maria and Natasha smile at one another, remembering their heroics as well as President Kimball’s strong pro-superhero stance. “This isn’t meant to diminish your victory in DC, but rather to… conglomerate good. And where else is good needed the most than the wild, wild West?”

* * *

_And thus, the New Avengers were born! Forged from the fires of their own personal hells, they have returned to protect humanity! They are…_

_The twin_ **_Captain Americas_** _!_ **_King T’Challa_ ** _of Wakanda! The high-flying_ **_Captain Marvel_** _! The spectacular_ **_Spider-Man_** _! The magnificent_ **_Doctor Strange_** _! The goddess of thunder_ **_Thor_** _!_ **_King_ _Valkyri_ e** _of New Asgard! Lady_ **_Sif_** _! The mesmerizing_ **_Scarlet Witch_** _!_ **_Shang-Chi_ ** _, Master of Kung-Fu! And the_ **_Black Knight_ ** _and_ **_Sersei_** _!_

 _United as one, they battle the forces of evil and protect the innocent! They are_ **_THE NEW AVENGERS_** _!_

Hill turns off her phone as the commercial ends. She rests her head on Natasha’s shoulder as they soak in the West Coast sunshine.

_Former Stark Mansion_

_May 11th, 2024, 10:32_

In the years following its destruction at the hands of the Ten Rings, a new mansion, larger and sturdier than the last, was built where it once stood. And fortunately enough, it was also readily available for its new occupants to move into.

Natasha misses the old building and the memories that were made in it, but she accepts the change in scenery. After all, the skies are still gorgeous in their clarity.

As the other New Avengers - _still looking for a new name_ \- move in, Maria asks the new intern sent in from Division 3, “Doreen, how are the phone lines?”

The team’s plucky young secretary, Doreen Green, tells her with an affirmative thumbs up, “All set up, Commander Hill!”

“Wonderful, thanks.” Maria and Natasha continue walking through the new base, hand in hand, together as one.

To their collective surprise, the team seems to be sticking together… for the most part. Silver and Night Monkey are still needed in Symkaria where the civil unrest has continued, Robbie is insistent that he’s a lone wolf travelling down his own path of vigilantism, and Talos and Soren are busy with Nick Fury and the interstellar affairs of SWORD. Regardless, they’ve each made it clear that, should the team ever need them, they’ll be at the ready to assist.

Even more surprising are the continued membership of Rhodey, Scott and Hope as they were all offered spots on the officially sanctioned New Avengers team back on the East Coast. As Rhodey put it, “we’re already on the New Avengers. They’re just relocating to California.”

Plus, as Scott and Hope explained, “San Francisco is much closer to Malibu than New York.”

Maria and Natasha stop at a balcony facing the Pacific Ocean and take a seat on a nearby bench. They’re happy, back together again despite insurmountable odds, and they’re ready to lead this odd little Avengers lineup into the future. Whatever lies ahead, the Avengers are ready to face it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to thank you all - readers, commenters, kudos-ers bookmarkers, subscribers - for following me on this journey! It's been a bit tough, what with 2020 being the way it is, and I hope that I've been able to provide you all with entertainment through my work in spite of the delays and long waits.
> 
> I do have ideas for sequels and spin-offs, though it will certainly take a while for them to release as I have other works that I want to write in the meantime, as well as the upcoming MCU shows and movies to watch as they come out. Until then, please take care!


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